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PASTOR'S GIFT, 

OR 

CONVERT'S MANUAL, 

EMBRACING 

AN OUTLINE OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 

BY 3R.IEV- -A.- JOY, 




" Whether, therefore, ye eat or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to 
the glory of God." — Paul. 



BOSTON: 
WENT WORTH, HEWES & CO. 
86 Washington Street. 
18 5 8. 





Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1858, 
by Rev. A. Joy, in the Clerk's Office of the District 
Court of the District of Massachusetts. 



PREFACE. 



A want, long experienced, naturally leads to 
the creation of a supply, if no supply is to be 
found. Such have been the facts in regard to the 
following pages. They had their origin in the 
necessities of the author, as felt by himself while 
a young Christian, and also during his subsequent 
labors as a pastor. They are not designed to su- 
percede any of the excellent works already in use, 
but to fill an apparent vacancy. With this end in 
view, and with a humble hope that they are not 
wholly unadapted to the object proposed, they are 
herewith submitted to the friendly attention of 
the Christian public, 

Author. 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS. 

PAGE 

Repentance the First Duty enjoined in 



the Gospel 9 

The Importance of Practical Knowledge 

to the Christian 11 

The True Standard of Christian Piety... 15 
The Christian Profession should be highly 

esteemed 23 

We should be true to ourselves as Pro- 
fessing Christians 27 

CHAPTER II. 

THE CHURCH. 

The Object of Forming Churches 32 

The Duty of Uniting with the Church.... 37 

What it is to unite with the Church 43 

Withdrawing from the Church, and Los- 
ing Membership in it 49 

CHAPTER III. 

PRAYER. 

The Design of Prayer 56 

Secret Prayer 60 

Family Prayer 67 

Social Prayer 73 

Social Prayer by Females 78 

1* 



CONTENTS, 



CHAPTER IV. 



PRIVATE PERSONAL VIRTUES. 

PAGE 

Filial Virtues 82 

Settlement in Life , 86 

Conjugal Virtues 93 

Parental Virtues 98 

Virtues to be exercised in various other 

Relations in Life Ill 

A Cheerful Disposition 121 

Self-Control 123 

Unyielding Integrity 126 

Benevolence 134 

Observance of the Sabbath 142 

CHAPTER V. 

DUTIES TO CHURCH MEMBERS. 

The Reception of New Members 149 

Mutual Love 157 

Mutual Forbearance 161 

Mutual Watch-care 165 

Protection of Character 169 

Temporal Assistance 174 

Conduct in Relation to Ministers 180 

Treatment of other Denominations 183 

CHAPTER VI. 

THE SUPPORT OF RELIGION. 

The Duty of Supporting Religion 186 

Religion is to be supported by our Prop- 
erty 194 

Religion is to be supported by our Per- 
sonal Efforts 207 

The Lord's Supper 216 



CONTENTS. 



7 



CHAPTER VII. 



CHURCH DISCIPLINE. 

PAGE 

The Importance of Church Discipline. ... 226 

The Requisite Causes of Church Discip- 
line 226 

The Method of Proceeding in Church 
Discipline 241 

Who is to sustain Church Discipline 256 

CHAPTER VIII. 

PERSEVERANCE. 

What is meant by Perseverance 262 

The Importance of Perseverance 268 

Motives to Perseverance 273 

CHAPTER IX. 

DIVINE ASSISTANCE. 

Our need of this Assistance 280 

Encouragement to expect this Assistance 286 

CHAPTER X. 

INDIVIDUAL RESPONSIBILITY. 

The Rule of our Final Judgment 293 

No Christian is excused from Duty 296 

The Unconverted are not excused 305 

Christ our Example — Poetry 313 



CHAPTER I. 

PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS. 



REPENTANCE THE FIRST DUTY ENJOINED IN THE GOSPEL. 

" Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is 
at hand." This was the burden of John's 
message as he came " preaching in the wild- 
erness of Judea." So with that of Christ and 
the apostles. Their first injunction ever was 
" Repent ye and believe the Gospel" — " Re- 
pent and be baptized every one of you in the 
name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of 
sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy 
Ghost." 

Men had estranged themselves from God 
and, therefore, the first thing to be done was 
to recall them to a sense of their wrong, re- 
store them to the Divine favor, and place them 
in the proper attitude of love and obedience. 

The ship had lost its compass and been 
driven far out of its way in the adverse 



10 



the pastor's gift; or, 



storm, and therefore, as the sun reappears, 
its helm must be borne hard down and the 
prow be turned anew to its true haven. 

There is no partial reformation demanded 
in the Gospel. It is to be entire, embracing 
the affections as well as the outer life. We 
are to become "new creatures " in Christ, 
new in our love, new in our hope, new in our 
purpose, and new in every thing. This 
change, or reformation, is a first requirement. 
It is so of necessity. It is first in time and 
first in importance. It underlies all subse- 
quent acceptable service. It is that which 
restores us to the moral image and to the 
favor of God, and which he now, first of all, 
demands of " all men, every where." It is a 
renovation without which we cannot become 
Christians or be saved. We "Must be born 
again — born from above — born of the Spirit 
— born of God ; " or as it is expressed in dif- 
ferent language in other places, we must be- 
come "The children of God — be created in 
Christ Jesus unto good works — have the wash- 
ing of regeneration and the renewing of the 
Holy Ghost." This must be first or all else 
will be insufficient. 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 11 

This repentance, or radical reformation, is 
supposed to have been experienced by those 
to whom the following pages are more par- 
ticularly addressed. How has it been with 
you, kind reader ? Have you repented ? 
Have you been "born of the Spirit? " Are 
you now, or are you not, walking " in new- 
ness of life? " 



THE IMPORTANCE OP PRACTICAL KNOWLEDGE TO THE 
CHRISTIAN. 

Were a man about to start on a journey, 
new to him, he would first need know the 
way and the necessities which attend it. 
Were he about to commence a new work, he 
should first understand what the work is and 
how it is to be performed. So in the case 
before us. The young Christian starts on a 
journey, which though often pursued by 
others, has never been attempted by himself. 
He leaves the old, the open, and the broad 
way, and enters the new, the unfrequented 
and the straight. He commences a work of 
which he has often heard, but never before 
attempted himself. There is a necessity, 



12 



the pastor's gift; or, 



therefore, of the appropriate knowledge. 
Religion must be supposed to have, not only a 
theory, but a practice. It has its system of 
duties, not less than its system of doctrines, 
And these duties we cannot imagine to be 
left to chance, accident, or our own mere 
momentary impulse, but unchangeably fixed 
by its own great Author. But if these du- 
ties are fixed and invariably the same, they 
cannot be strictly performed, except where 
they are previously known. "My people 
are destroyed for the lack of knowledge. 
Therefore the people, that doth not under- 
stand, shall fall." 

We know that much is often said of the 
affections; nor do we object to this in its 
proper place and in its just proportions. The 
heart must be kept with " all diligence ; for 
out of it are the issues of life." The affec- 
tions have a strong influence over the con- 
duct, and therefore, cannot be observed with 
too much exactness, or regulated with too 
much care. But at best, the affections often 
vary, while the duties of religion always re- 
main essentially the same. The affections 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 13 

or the feelings, therefore, cannot be trusted 
as the rule of life. 

You speak of impressions or of the Spir- 
it's influence- These are worthy of our care- 
ful attention, but evidently we cannot place 
our entire dependence on them. This may 
be sufficiently seen from the fact that the 
greatest pretenders here are often the cham- 
pions of the wildest and most palpable errors. 
And further ; if without question or qualifi- 
cation, we can depend on our impressions, or 
on the Spirit's influence, of what use is the 
Bible ? There is none. Its necessity is su- 
perseded. But if we throw away the Bible, 
where are w^e ? The foundation of our be- 
lief and hope is gone. We are lost. We 
are left to grope our way through deserts 
wild, and midnight gloom, wandering we know 
not whither, and ever liable to plunge into 
inextricable depths. Without chart, com- 
pass, or polar star, we are cast adrift on a 
wide, and, to us, unknown ocean, bewildered 
in darkness, and lost amid angry and path- 
less waves. But the Christian does take the 
Bible for his guide. This is his acknowl- 



14 



the pastor's gift; or, 



edged and cherished light. But a guide is 
of no use, except it is understood and fol- 
lowed. A lamp is worthless, if hid under a 
measure. The Bible avails not, if there is 
something else paramount to it. 

It is knowledge then, and knowledge onlj 
that can safely direct us as Christians. It is 
by this, and this alone, that we can hope to 
escape the dangers which attend our course, 
or assure ourselves that we are in the path 
of truth and duty. And if we take the Bi- 
ble for our guide, we must know what it 
teaches. We may, indeed, seek knowledge 
from other sources. We may become familiar 
with the nature and the laws of our complex 
constitution. We may learn from the sacred 
desk, from the wisdom of the wise and the 
experience of the good. But our great source 
of instruction is the Bible. To us, as Chris- 
tians, this is the Book of books. It is our 
sun. Other volumes are valuable in their 
place, but in the department of Christian 
duty, they are to be viewed only as mirrors 
or lenses to reflect the light of the sacred 
page or passages in life, otherwise dark, or 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 15 

to concentrate its rays on difficult points. 
u Get wisdom, get understanding ; forget it 
not, neither decline from the words of my 
mouth. Forsake her not and she shall pre- 
serve thee ; love her and she shall keep thee. 
Wisdom is the principal thing ; therefore get 
wisdom, and with all thy getting get under- 
standing. Exalt her and she shall promote 
thee; she shall bring thee to honor, when 
thou dost embrace her." 



THE TEUE STAND AKD OF CHRISTIAN PIETY. 

In the preceding Section we have noticed 
the importance of practical knowledge. This 
truth we have further illustrated in the one 
now before us. The discharge of an obliga- 
tion necessarily presupposes a knowledge 
of the same. And if we would meet an ob- 
ligation faithfully, and to its full extent, we 
must first clearly understand its entire claims. 
We profess to be Christians. We feel that 
this profession implies duties, and if we would 
meet these duties to the full, it becomes to 
us a most important question, what are they ? 



16 



the pastor's gift; or ; 



Or in other words, what is the true standard 
of Christian piety ? 

In endeavoring to place the question now 
before us, and to which we invite a candid 
and earnest attention, in its true light, we 
define the answer to be unreserved conse- 
cration. We are to do " no evil." We are to 
serve God, not in part, but wholly. We are 
to present our hearts to him in full sub- 
mission, and " our bodies a living sacrifice, 
holy, acceptable, which is our reasonable 
service." 

Every one presumes the devotion of the 
minister, and especially, if he be a mission- 
ary, to be, necessarily, entire. All suppose 
a suitable incumbent of that sacred and 
laborious office, must have supreme love to 
God. He must be willing to perform any 
duty, however unpleasant, to make any sac- 
rifice, however great, to practice any self- 
denial, however severe. He must be anxious 
to know, to do, and to suffer the entire will 
of God. This view is correct. But this 
standard of piety, thus justly understood and 
even demanded for the minister or mission- 
ary, is the one by which every Christian, in 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 17 

every situation, is bound to act. Why should 
it be thought otherwise ? On what principle 
can we require a greater degree of devotion 
in one disciple of Christ than in another? 
Is the one more, or the other less than a 
creature of God ? Is the one redeemed by 
the blood of Christ, and wholly so, more than 
is the other ? Is the letter and the spirit of 
the Bible one thing to one and another thing 
to another? Certainly not. No one pre- 
tends this, or any thing like it. Why then 
make a difference in the standards of piety 
which you would set up, respectively, for the 
two? 

You say that we should have much piety 
to become missionaries. True. But if we 
have not piety enough to become missiona- 
ries, have we enough to become ministers ? 
And if we have not enough to become minis- 
ters, have we enough to become church-mem- 
bers ? And if we have not enough to become 
church-members, have we enough to cherish 
the faintest hope of heaven ? To these in- 
quiries there can be but one consistent an- 
swer, and that answer is no. It may be that 
few only have the qualifications requisite to 



IS 



THE PASTOR'S GIFT; OR; 



become missionaries or ministers. It is cer- 
tain that but few are called upon to make 
the effort, and practice the self-denial which 
are inseparable from the office and circum- 
stances of those who labor in these responsi- 
ble departments of usefulness. The spirit, 
however, which would make us willing to do 
this, should the providence of God mark it 
as our duty, is the spirit which is required 
of all. It is the disposition which we all 
cherished, when we were first adopted into 
the family of God. This was the very breath 
and beauty of our first love. Our wills were 
then subdued ; we were brought into sweet 
subjection to the law of Christ, and our great 
anxiety was, to know and to do His whole 
pleasure. So it should ever be. Like the 
buoyancy of childhood; like the first glow 
of youthful affection, that peculiar warmth 
of feeling, which is so common to the young 
Christian, will naturally and necessarily sub- 
side. But his purity of devotion, his strength 
of affection, and his willingness and anxiety 
to serve should pass away — never. It should 
be increased rather. As our evidence be- 
comes more clear, and our hopes more fully 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 19 



confirmed, our love, likewise, should augment 
in strength ; we should become more and 
more like Christ, and more and more devoted 
to Him. 

This entireness of devotion is to exist, 
not only in religious things, but also in 
those ivhich are temporal. Says the apostle, 
" Whether therefore ye eat or drink, or what- 
soever ye do, do all to the glory of God." 
And again, " Ye are bought with a price ; 
therefore glorifyGod, in your bodies and in 
your spirit, which are God's." No language 
can be more comprehensive than this. What- 
soever we do, be it religious or secular, pub- 
lic or private, relating directly to God, to 
our fellow-men or to ourselves, it is to be 
done as a matter of duty or privilege ; as 
something required by our Maker, or as 
something well pleasing to Him. Religion 
is not the business of the Sabbath merely, but 
of every day. It is not an outside garment, 
designed for particular places or occasions ; 
it is a badge of societyship, to be worn at all 
times and amid all scenes. It has its seat 
in the heart, and, changing and controlling 
this, is to produce a corresponding outward 



20 



the pastor's gift ; OR, 



reformation. It is a precious jewel, preserv- 
ed in a transparent casket, and, consequently, 
always to be seen, when the casket is pres- 
ent. It places the will of man in that rela- 
tion to the will of God, which the small 
wheel, in Ezekiel's vision, sustained to the 
larger one ; it is "a wheel in the middle of a 
wheel." There is to be a will within a will, 
the greater embracing and controlling the 
less. 

Do you ask for proof of the correctness 
of the position here assumed ? But this we 
have in the^most natural and simple reason- 
ing, independent of revelation. If we re- 
flect for a moment, we must feel that man as 
man, and ourselves as individuals, had a Cre- 
ator ; that we were created and brought into 
the world for some specific object; that this 
object is marked out by the law or the will 
of the Creator ; and, consequently, that to 
understand and to do this will, is our first, 
our highest, and our all-comprehending duty. 

But to these natural and unavoidable de- 
ductions of reason, we have added the exam- 
ple of Christ. His language is, "Neverthe- 
less, not as I will but as thou wilt." So the 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 21 

Saviour prayed, and in accordance with this 
prayer was his entire conduct. But " The 
servant is not greater than his Lord ; neither 
is he that is sent greater than He that sent 
him." But if Christ made the will of God 
His rule of duty, how can we follow His 
example, and yet make any other principle 
our rule of duty ? The thing is impossible. 
The moment we attempt this we cease to 
follow Christ. 

But in addition to reason and the example 
of Christ, we have the express testimony of 
Scripture. This is embraced in " The first 
and in the great commandment," " Thou shalt 
love the Lord thy God, with all thy heart, 
and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind." 
Our love to God, then, is to be supreme. But 
supreme love will require full submission and 
unreserved obedience. Says our Saviour, in 
the prayer which He taught his disciples, 
" Thy kingdom come and thy will be done, in 
earth, as in heaven." But how can it be 
our duty to pray, first of all, that the will of 
God be done, unless it be our duty to labor, 
first of all, to do this will? Again; "If 
any man come to me, and hate not" (that is ? 



22 



the pastor's gift; or 



love not less than me) " his father and moth- 
er, and wife and children, and brothers and 
sisters, and his own life also, he cannot be 
my disciple.' ' And still again, in the lan- 
guage of Paul, "I beseech you, therefore, 
by the mercies of God, that ye present your 
bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable 
unto God, which is your reasonable service. 
And be not comformed to this world, but be 
ye transformed by the renewing of your 
minds, that ye may prove what is that good, 
and acceptable, and perfect will of God." 
These and numerous other passages, leave us 
no standard of duty, but the one we have 
affirmed ; viz. : that of entire consecration to 
G-od and Sis service. What is here said 
"to one," is said "to all," and is binding 
upon all. As creatures of God, and as the 
redeemed of Christ, our only appropriate at- 
titude is that of Paul, when he prayed, 
" Lord what wilt thou have me to do ? " And 
as* duty is made known to us, like Paul, we 
should hasten to obey, conferring "not with 
flesh and blood," nor counting our own "life 
dear" unto us. Reader, do vou stand in this 
attitude ? Are you thus obedient ? 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 



23 



THE CHRISTIAN PROFESSION SHOULD BE HIGHLY 
ESTEEMED. 

" As a man thinketh, so is he." Our feel- 
ings in regard to an enterprise, will charac- 
terize our conduct in relation to it. If we 
view it as trivial or unworthy, we shall be 
without zeal or energy in its pursuit, On the 
other hand, let it magnify itself in our esti- 
mation, and it will inspire us with fidelity 
and bear us forward with unfaltering courage. 
So in the case before us. With low views of 
the Christian profession, no one will do jus- 
tice to it, or to himself as one that bears it. 
His ideas should be those of the most eleva- 
ted character, making him believe that he 
has before him the greatest, and most de- 
serving object which it is possible for man to 
pursue, 

A celebrated poet has said, 

" An honest man's the noblest work of God." 

A more correct sentiment would be, a man 
of consistent piety is this work. Honesty 
is good so far as it goes, but true piety 



£4 



the pastor's gift; or, 



will embrace this, while it goes far beyond it. 
It is this that restores man to a resemblance 
of what he was before the fall. It is this 
that restamps him with the image of his 
Maker ; and it is this that allies him in spirit 
w r ith the beings above. Look at the relation 
which he holds to God, the present object for 
which he labors, or his hopes for the future, 
and he is alike raised in his moral position 
far above that of men of all other names, 
professions or hopes. 

Would you be joined with the wise, the 
good or the great ? The Christian is the dis- 
ciple of Him who taught as " never man" 
taught. He is a subject of Him who is 
" King of kings and Lord of lords." His 
leader is the Creator and Governor of worlds. 
He is folded in the arms of divine love. He 
is a child of God, and not only a child, but 
one that is " dear." 

Do you speak of great purposes or great 
deeds ? But here the Christian is in advance 
of all others. He is engaged in a cause 
which was planned, and is controlled by the 
Omnipotent One, — which commands the in- 
terest and admiration of angels, and which 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 25 

would have more than tasked an angel's 
powers. He acts as " the salt of the earth :" 
He stands as "the light of the world." His 
great work is to recover man from his pre- 
sent sin and woe, and make him better and 
happier here, and supremely holy and happy 
for ever hereafter. 

Do you point to future hopes and the ulti- 
mate reward of toil ? But who has anticipa- 
tions or recompense like the Christian ? His 
hope is "laid up" for him "in heaven." He 
is not only adopted into the family of God, 
but is made an " heir of God, and a joint heir 
with Christ." His portion is to be " Durable 
riches and righteousness — a house not made 
with hands," — and "a crown of glory that 
fadeth not away." His "mortality" is to be 
"swallowed up of life." 

Do you compare the state of the mere 
worldly man with that of the disciple of 
Jesus ? But what is there in the two which 
admits of comparison? The feelings, the 
hopes and the efforts of the one tend down- 
ward ; those of the other upward. The one 
collects his all on this little ball of earth and 
suspends it by the thread of time ; and the 
3 



26 the pastor's gift; or, 

other measures his by the utmost limits of 
God's goodness, and binds it with the line of 
eternity. 

Do you contrast the Christian with the 
infidel ? The infidel ! What does he do, or 
what would he do if he had the power? 
Mock and defy the Being who made him ; 
blight every moral virtue ; crush in the dust 
man's purest and most lofty hopes ; drag him 
down in feeling to a level with the brute ; and 
then make to him the future a fearful plunge 
into the murky chaos of oblivion. The feel- 
ings of the skeptic find a home amid clouds 
and gloom, while those of the believer play 
amid fields of light and peace. The thoughts 
of the one grovel in the dust and plod in the 
mire, while those of the other rise above the 
heavens, and, with the rapidity of light, range 
far beyond the measure of present concep- 
tion. The one may talk of death, as being 
"a leap in the dark," or "a sleep without 
dreams ; " but the heart of the other beats for 
the present with the fullest and most pleas- 
ing emotions ; he meets death with a smile, 
while he looks beyond it with the brightest 
and most glowing hopes. 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 27 

Who then would be ashamed to be called a 
Christian ? Let no one do this who has the 
least hope of the Christain. Rather let him 
feel that he can have no higher honor than to 
be a humble and consistent follower of Jesus. 
Let it be so while he is alone, conversing with 
his own thoughts, and with God. Let it be 
so also amid the busy scenes of public life, 
and, if need be, amid the scoffs, and jeers, 
and opposition of the wicked. 



WE SHOULD BE TRUE TO OUR PRINCIPLES AS PROFESSING! 
CHRISTIANS. 

We have spoken of the esteem which we 
should cherish for the Christian profession. 
We should have scarcely less for ourselves as 
members of that profession. Do we claim this 
privilege ? Then we should feel that we stand 
on high and holy ground. We should realize 
that the vows of God are upon us, and that 
the eyes of angels watch to witness their ful- 
fillment. Our calling is a high and holy one, 
and, while we should feel that we are greatly 



28 THE PASTOR'S GIFT; OR ; 

honored of God in being permitted to share 
in it, we should be resolved to honor that 
calling. The just and noble decision ' of 
Joshua was, " As for me and my house, we 
will serve the Lord." Daniel, rather than 
abate one iota of his long-continued and soul- 
inspiring devotion to Jehovah, was ready to 
brave the displeasure of the absolute monarch, 
lose his elevated civil position, and face even 
the entire troop of lions in their own fiercely 
guarded fortress. And what said Nehemiah 
in the hour of his strong and repeated temp- 
tations ? His ever to be admired and firm- 
toned language was, "I am doing a great 
work, so that I cannot come down. — Should 
such a man as I flee ? And who is there, 
that, being as I am, would go into the temple 
to save his life ? I will not go in." Here is 
the proper spirit. Like Joshua, like Daniel, 
like the three cast into the flaming furnace, 
or like Nehemiah, the Christian should appre- 
ciate his moral position, and, fully apprecia- 
ting, should stand immovable. He should 
feel a stain on his character more deeply than 
he would feel a wound upon his person. With 
more dread than he would escape the enven- 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 



29 



omed and already darted fang of the serpent, 
he should "avoid the appearance of evil." 
Virtue should be to him more than the largest 
and purest material gem. 

Humility is indeed a choice Christian grace. 
A meek and quiet spirit, a gentle and unas- 
suming demeanor is above all price. But 
there is no reason why we should be ever de- 
preciating ourselves, either in our own esti- 
mation, or in the estimation of others. Hum- 
ble we should be before God, but before man 
we may stand erect. Mild and yielding in 
other things, and yet, conscious that we have 
truth for our principles, and right for our 
practice, when these are called in question, 
we should be immovable as the mountains of 
rock. If duty is doubtful, we may justly 
hesitate. If it is plain, we should be more 
willing to suffer death than swerve from it, 
and thus have the name of Christ reproached. 
A soldier of Washington or of Bonapart felt 
that he must be as Washington or as Bona- 
part was. He must be animated by the same 
spirit, and armed with the same cour- 
age. So it should be with the Christian. 
He is the soldier of Christ, and he should 
3* 



30 



THE PASTOR* S GIFT; OR; 



endeavor to be as Christ was, preserving 
His spirit and following His example. He 
should keep aloof alike from great and from 
small sins. His flight" should "so shine 
before men," that they, "seeing his good 
works, should glorify God." Even "from 
all appearance of evil " he should most care- 
fully "abstain." 

In the days of early persecution, Christians 
were often brought before the magistrates. 
When thus arraigned, they had put to them 
as a test question, "Have you kept the Lord's 
day?" and if true Christians, and true to 
their profession, their reply was, "i" am a 
Christian; I must keep it." So should 
every Christian feel, and this too, at all times 
and in all places. In the hour of temptation 
he should say to himself and to others, if need 
be, "J am a Christian; I must do what I 
believe and know to be right. I am a Chris- 
tian, and I must not do what I believe and 
know to be wrong " There should be inspi- 
ration in this thought. It should hold us, as 
with a spell, from that which is forbidden of 
God. It should urge us, with unflinching 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 31 

energy, to full obedience to every command. 
Reader, do you profess to be a Christian? 
Then never, no never, dishonor that sacred 
name. It is the name on which rests your 
salvation, your hope, your glory. 



82 



the pastor's gift; or, 



CHAPTER II. 

THE CHURCH. 



THE OBJECT OF FORMING CHURCHES. 

The term church is used in the New Testa- 
ment in two senses. One of these is to ex- 
press the whole number of Christian believers. 
This is the case in Eph. i : 22 ; Heb. xii : 23. 
The other and the more common application, 
is to any number of Christians, associated in 
one body, and meeting together in one place, 
for the purposes of worship, instruction, and 
discipline. — Rom. xvi: 5; 1 Cor. iv: 17; 
Col. iv : 15. Sometimes, to make the term 
more specific, we have added the qualifying 
phrase, "of God."— Acts xx: 28; 1 Cor. i: 2. 
When two or more religious assemblies are 
spoken of, they are called "churches," state, 
national, or other large associated bodies of 
churches, being unknown in those days. 
—Acts ix: 31; 1 Cor. vii: 17. 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 



as 



It is in the ordinary use of the term church 
that we employ it at the present time. We 
mean by it, simply, a number of Christian 
believers associated together for ordinary re- 
ligious purposes. Such bodies were always 
formed by the apostles wherever a sufficient 
number of disciples were found. Following, 
then, this early example, what is the object to 
be secured in thus forming churches and gath- 
ering Christians into them ? This is in no 
place distinctly defined. We suppose it, how- 
ever, to be chiefly threefold : the mutual 
benefit of Christians, the maintenance of the 
cause of Christ, and the extension of that 
cause. It seems to be the natural and the 
necessary result of the common feelings, in- 
terest and obligations of Christians. Like 
different drops of water, they are drawn to- 
gether from their own inherent attraction, 
and when thus united, the one has a strong 
and salutary influence over the other, and 
the strength of the whole is greatly increased. 

The first object to be secured then, in form- 
ing thurches, is the mutual benefit of Chris- 
tians. We say the mutual benefit. We go 
into the church not only to receive good, but 



THE PASTOR'S GIFT; OR, 



to impart it. We are to aid, as well as be 
aided ; to bless, as well as be blessed. We 
are creatures of impressions. We influence 
others, and they influence us. Our interests, 
hopes, and feelings blend with those of our 
associates, and consequently are strengthened 
or weakened according to the character of 
these associates. It is therefore in much 
mercy that the Great Head of the church has 
ordained that His people should be " to- 
gether — be of the same mind — keep the 
unity of the spirit, in the bond of peace — 
exhort one another — pray one for another — 
bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the 
law of Christ." 

But beyond the simple good of Christians, 
they are to unite for the more efficient support 
of the Christian cause. When the moral and 
ceremonial laws were given, they were in- 
trusted to the Israelites. "Unto them were 
committed the oracles of God." These they 
were to keep inviolate, and observe with the 
most strict fidelity. God was about to re- 
establish His truth and His cause on earth, 
and the tribes of Israel were made the repos- 
itories of this truth and the supporters of this 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 35 



cause. So the precious declarations of the 
Gospel and its support are now intrusted to 
Christians. They are made its life guard. 
They are to cherish and to defend it, both for 
their own good, and the good of others. To 
this end they are to maintain the public 
preaching of the Word, meet for worship, and 
observe and preserve inviolate the divine or- 
dinances. In doing this, they unite in 
churches that their strength may be com- 
bined, and their influence more fully felt. 
Says our Saviour, " Ye are the light of the 
world." And this light of ours is so to 
" shine before men," that they may see it, and 
thereby be led to an acknowledgment and re- 
ception of the truth. We are this "light," 
not only separately, but collectively. We are 
not a house, a single individual, " set on a 
hill," but "a city." The church is " The 
pillar and ground of the truth." "Do all 
things without murmurings or disputings, that 
ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons 
of God, without rebuke in the midst of a 
crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye 
shine as lights in the world ; holding forth the 
word of life." Cherishing the Gospel our- 



86 



the pastor's gift; or, 



selves as Heaven's own most precious boon, 
we are unitedly to hold forth the same to the 
gaze, the admiration and attraction of others, 
that they may be drawn to the light, and be 
guided and saved by it. 

But as Christians, we are to do more than 
simply hold up this light to those immedi- 
ately around us. Our commission is to "go 
into all the world" and bear it "to every 
creature" Our great work is the conversion 
to Grod of the entire human family. So the 
early Christians understood their duty, and so 
they acted. The first churches were most 
eminently missionary bodies, embracing in 
their operations both the domestic and for- 
eign field. If one church was afflicted, others 
sympathized with it. If it needed assistance, 
this was cheerfully given. And " in the re- 
gions beyond 97 their own present limits, they 
sent forth their messengers to proclaim, every 
where, the glad news of redeeming love. So 
fully was this the case, that even in the 
apostle's day, " their sound went into all the 
earth, and their words unto the end of the 
world." The Acts of the Apostles is but a 
history of missions,and thedifferent Eepistles 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 37 

are full of missionary allusions and arguments 
to missionary efforts. 

But if Christ gave to the early Christians 
the command to convert the world to himself, 
if those of that age felt that this injunction 
was binding upon them, and acted accord- 
ingly, why should it not be so at present ? 
We know of no reason. And not only so, 
but this injunction must ever be binding, till 
the conversion of the world is complete. This 
is the great work of the church, and in its 
execution every Christian has a part, and 
that he may act this part more efficiently, he 
is to enter the church. If he stands alone, 
bis influence may be unfelt, or his efforts be 
powerless. Uniting himself with the church, 
he not only benefits himself, but renders more 
productive his efforts for the good of others. 



THE DUTY OF UNITING WITH THE CHURCH. 

This duty has been indicated, in part, in 
the preceding section. If the prominent ob- 
jects in forming churches are to secure the 
mutual benefit of Christians, and make them 
4 



38 the pastor's gift; or, 

more efficient in their duties of sustaining and 
in advancing the cause of Christ, then the 
duty of uniting with one of these bodies is 
evident. If Christians, we are urged to it by 
a just regard to our own welfare and useful- 
ness. But to take other views of it, we would 
say, 

To unite with the church and thus publicly 
profess Christ, is but an appropriate act of 
gratitude. Says the Redeemer to the restored 
Gadarene, " Go home to thy friends and tell 
them what great things the Lord hath done 
for thee, and hath had compassion on thee." 
So says He in substance to every Christian. 
If we have been "renewed in the spirit" of 
our minds, we have had great things done for 
us. We have received unmeasured compas- 
sion, and a proper acknowledgement of this 
is an open and public espousal of the Saviour's 
cause. " Were there not ten cleansed ? But 
where are the nine? There are not found 
that returned to give glory to God, save this 
stranger." And truly, where is that individ- 
ual, what are his feelings, or what is his 
religious position, who, indulging a hope that 
he is a Christian, yet withholds its proper 



OUTLINES OP CHRISTIAN DUTY. 39 

public acknowledgment ? He occupies ground 
•which is nowhere sanctioned in the Bible. 
"And that He died for all, that they which 
live, should not henceforth live unto them- 
selves, but unto Him which died for them 
and rose again." 

But not only a sense of gratitude, but the 
example of the early Christians, urge us to 
this act. " Then they that gladly received 
his word were baptized, * * * and all 
that believed were together." So in other 
places. Wherever we read of mens' believ- 
ing, their next step was, invariably, to be 
baptized and thus publicly associate them- 
selves with some body of Christians. But 
if the primitive disciples thus early united 
with the church, we justly infer our own duty 
to do the same. 

And yet further ; the New Testament pos- 
itively enjoins this duty. The great commis- 
sion is, " Go ye, therefore, and teach (or 
make disciples of) all nations, baptizing them 
in the name of the Father, and of the Son, 
and of the Holy Ghost." Here the com- 
mand to the apostles to baptize those who 
should become Christians, is equivalent to a 



40 



the pastor's gift; or, 



command to such to be baptized. Of similar 

import is the language of Christ, as recorded 

in another place, "He that believeth and 

is baptized.' ' But the language of Peter, 

and that of Ananias, is direct. Says the 

one, "Repent and be baptized, every one of 

you." And says the other, "Why tarriest 

thou? Arise and be baptized." * * 
******** * 

* * * "For as many of you as 
have been baptized into Christ, have put on 
Christ." That is, you have made an open 
and public acknowledgement of your interest 
and hope in Christ, and of your intention to 
follow Him. 

The question then, of uniting with some 
visible church of Christ, is not left to our 
choice. It is predecided by the Great Head 
of the church, and is rendered imperative on 
our part. We know that the duty is often 
neglected, and this under different pleas. 
But no excuse, except that of a prohibiting 
Providence, can justify the disregard of a 
positive injunction. When God speaks, the 
creature should have no wish to reply, nor 
should he dare defer. The idea of being a 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 41 

Christian, and yet paying no regard to such 
a supposition, either in profession or practice, 
is perfectly incongruous and absurd. It can 
not be cherished for a moment by any can- 
did and thinking mind. No one has reason 
to hope that he is a renewed person, except 
as his affections and conduct correspond to 
the requirements of the Gospel. But sup- 
pose that those who neglect here, are really 
born of God, how can they hope to live in 
the desired enjoyment of religion, while they 
are deliberately disregarding its precepts? 
As well hope to sustain and render happy 
the body without food. To obey, strengthens 
our religious feelings, and encourages our 
hopes. To disobey, weakens both. Neglect 
is planting thorns in our own bosoms. It 
clips the wings of the soul and hangs upon 
them leaden weights. It awakens distrust. 
It benumbs the conscience, or transfixes it 
with barbed arrows. It is so with a disre- 
gard of any duty. It is emphatically so as 
it respects the one before us. Unduly defer 
or disregard here, inquiring reader, and you 
will soon receive to yourself the conse- 
quences. The command of God is before 
4 * 



42 



the pastor's gift; or, 



you, and you have no alternative but obey or 
dare His displeasure. 

But here, perhaps, some one may inquire, 
with what church shall I unite, seeing there 
are so many of different names and creeds ? 
We reply, with the one whose principles and 
practices you can, most cordially and fully, 
fellowship. To do otherwise, would be to 
suppress your own convictions, and perhaps, 
neutralize your subsequent usefulness. The 
simple question for you to ask is, what is 
right, or what does the New Testament 
teach? And as you understand, so act. 
Early education, the attachment of friends, 
popularity, the strength or weakness of par- 
ticular societies, are considerations which 
should not be allowed to influence you, no — 
not for a moment. It is for Christ to direct, 
and for you to follow. His Word is your 
chart, and compass, and star. And to this you 
are to make your appeal, and so abide. In 
our judgment, however, there is not that wide 
dissimilarity in different evangelical systems 
which some would have us suppose. There 
are differences, it is true, and some that are 
important. They are important in them- 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 43 

selves, and often much more so in their ten- 
dencies. Error seldom remains solitary. 
The adoption of one, naturally and almost 
necessarily leads to that of others, and oth- 
ers still, till we are led far away from truth 
and duty. While, therefore, we should not 
egotistically imagine that all truth and piety 
is connected with any one church or society, 
nor absolutely debarred from others, w r e 
should discriminate carefully, and so decide 
for ourselves, and most scrupulously act ac- 
cording to our own prayerful and closely ex- 
amined convictions. 



WHAT IT IS TO UNITE WITH THE CHURCH. 

As there is an object to be had in view in 
forming churches, so there is something im- 
plied in our connecting ourselves with one. 
This, we understand to be, first, 

A solemn and public profession of the 
Christian Religion, thereby acknowledging 
our belief, personal interest, and hope in it, 
and pledging ourselves to walk in accordance 
with its requirements. This has been done 



44 



the pastor's gift; or, 



before privately — in our closets, or in our 
secret communion with God, - — but now, pub- 
licly. We openly change sides in the great 
moral contest, which is going on in the w r orld 
— the contest between good and evil, religion 
and irreligion, obedience to God or disobe- 
dience. " For as many of you as have been 
baptized into Christ, have put on Christ. — 
Therefore we are buried with Him by bap- 
tism into death, that like as Christ was raised 
up from the dead, by the glory of the Father, 
even so we also should walk in newness of 
life/' 

But in addition to this public profession, 
we enter into a special engagement with the 
church of which we become members. We 
acknowledge our full and cordial fellowship 
with its principles, practice and discipline, 
and pledge ourselves to walk in harmony, 
love, and fidelity with it. Feeling it to be 
our duty to connect ourselves, publicly, with 
the people of God, and believing the church 
with which we propose to unite, to be sound 
in its principles and practice, we, therefore, 
give ourselves to that church. We submit to 
its watch-care and discipline, and engage to 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 



45 



support its meetings, ordinances, observances 
and general interests. This support is to be 
given by our example, influence, and means. 

Some suppose that a union with a church 
creates new obligations. Such a view, how- 
ever, is manifestly wrong. It simply ac- 
knowledges an obligation previously existing, 
and gives a pledge to fulfill it. This is es- 
pecially the case so far as it respects our 
Creator and the general duties of piety. 
With respect to the particular church with 
which we unite, our relation is altered. We 
enter into a solemn covenant with that church, 
and, consequently, come under the obliga- 
tions which that covenant imposes. But all 
else remains as it stood before. It does so, 
except as it is affected by our voluntary and 
cheerful promise to meet and discharge al- 
ready existing obligations. These are the 
obligations of the fellow to the fellow, of the 
creature to the Creator, and of the redeem- 
ed to the Redeemer, and are antecedent to 
all profession or non-profession, on our part, 
whatever. They exist independent of our 
conduct or will, and no act of ours can de- 
stroy or impair them. 



46 



the pastor's gift; or. 



But as a public profession of religion, and 
the consequent union with a church, creates no 
new natural or just obligation, so it deprives 
of no natural or just liberty. This step is 
voluntary, and if we act consistently when 
we take it, we take it because we feel this to 
be our duty. We suppose that the duties 
prescribed by the church, with which we 
unite, are in accordance with the Word of 
God, and, consequently, binding upon us, ir- 
respective of the decisions of that church. 
But to enter into an engagement to do what 
we previously believed to be our duty, does 
not and can not deprive us of any natural or 
just privilege. What is the highest degree 
of freedom which a moral agent can enjoy ? 
It is the freedom of doing right — that of 
fully performing his own and his entire duty. 
All desire for more than this is licentious- 
ness, and all that exceeds or falls short of it, 
is sin. 

We here subjoin a covenant, which is be- 
lieved to express the feelings which ought to 
influence one on uniting with the church, 
and also indicates the obligations assumed by 
that act. 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 47 



" Having been, as we trust, brought by 
Divine grace to embrace the Lord Jesus 
Christ, and to give up ourselves wholly to 
Him, we do, solemnly and joyfully, covenant 
with each other to walk together in Him, in 
brotherly love, and to His glory as our com- 
mon Lord. We do, therefore, in His strength, 
engage, 

"That we will exercise a mutual care as 
members of one another, to promote the 
growth of the whole body in Christian knowl- 
edge, holiness and comfort ; to the end that 
we may stand perfect and complete in all the 
will of God. 

" That to promote and to secure this object, 
we will uphold the public Worship of God 
and the ordinances of His house, and hold 
constant communion with each other therein ; 
that we will cheerfully contribute of our pro- 
perty for the support of the poor, and for 
the maintenance of a faithful ministry of the 
Gospel among us. 

" That we will not omit closet and family re- 
ligion at home, nor allow ourselves in the 
too common neglect of the great duty of re- 
ligiously training up our children, and those 



48 



the pastor's gift; or, 



under our care, with a view to the service of 
Christ, and the enjoy meut of heaven ; 

" That we will walk circumspectly in the 
world, that we may win their souls ; remember- 
ing that God hath not given us the spirit of 
fear, but of power and of love, and of a sound 
mind ; that we are the light of the world and 
the salt of the earth, and that a city set on 
a hill can not be hid ; 

" That we will frequently exhort, and if oc- 
casion shall require, admonish one another, 
according to Matt. 18, in the spirit of meek- 
ness, considering ourselves, lest we also be 
tempted; and that, as in baptism w^e have 
been buried with Christ and raised again, so 
there is on us a special obligation, thence- 
forth to walk in newness of life ; 

" And may the God of peace, who brought 
again from the dead, our Lord Jesus, that 
great Shepherd of the sheep, through the 
blood of the everlasting covenant, make us 
perfect in every good work to do His will ; 
working in us that which is well pleasing in 
His sight, through Jesus Christ ; to whom be 
glory, for ever and ever. Amen." 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 49 



WITHDRAWING FROM THE CHURCH AND LOSING 
MEMBERSHIP. 

We not unfrequently find persons, who 
once had a standing with the professed peo- 
ple of God, but now have not. The causes 
of this loss of membership are various. 
Some have become offended with a fellow 
member ; some have taken exception to cer- 
tain measures, adopted by the church ; some 
have lost their own personal interest ; others 
have become weary of unremitting individual 
effort, and others still, have removed from 
place to place, without carrying with them 
their church relation. Thus one has volun- 
tarily withdrawn himself, another has lost 
himself, and another has thrown himself 
away. 

Now, not to notice these practices in detail, 
we at once pronounce them all wrong, wrong 
in the beginning and wrong in the end. Who 
would think of neglecting an obligation to a 
father, because a brother may have done 
him some slight injustice ? Who would of- 
5 



50 



the pastor's gift; or, 



fend against a mother, because an older sis- 
ter had done the same ? Or who would go 
away from the rich and free provisions of a 
father's house, simply because he was cold, or 
destitute, or hungry or sick ? No one. But 
God is the Christian's father ; the church is 
his spiritual mother; her privileges are the 
rich provisions, made for his necessities by a 
divine hand, and why should he offend the 
first, neglect the second, or disdain the third, 
because of the infirmities of others or of him- 
self ? By such a course, he both offends and 
loses. He offends against the church and 
against God. He cruelly wrongs himself. 
No perfection is to be looked for on earth. 
We ourselves, often need the forgiveness and 
forbearance of our brethren, and that which 
we, each, individually and personally, need 
for ourselves, we should freely and cordially 
extend to others. Or if the offense of a 
brother justly calls for our notice, the Gos- 
pel marks out the proper course for us to pur- 
sue. If we are low in our own feelings, this 
is a reason for greater diligence in duty, rather 
than a cause for its neglect. If others are 
unfaithful to their covenant obligations, this 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 51 

is no excuse for our being as they are. Christ 
has made the church the home of his people, 
and no Christain can desert that home, or 
stray from it, without offending against its 
Author, and doing great injustice to himself. 

We can conceive of but two causes, which 
can, in any case, justify our separating our- 
selves from the church, after we have once 
conscientiously and understandingly united 
with it. These are when we have seen cause 
to abjure the sentiments formerly embraced, 
and when the church utterly neglects proper 
discipline, or has evidently and essentially 
departed from its original platform. If the 
former is true, even to such a degree that we 
can no longer consistently retain our mem- 
bership, then for us to withdraw is the dic- 
tate of reason, piety, and, we might add, 
good feeling. The opposite course would be 
decidedly wrong. And especially would it 
be wrong for us to remain in the church and 
take advantage of our position there to sow 
the seeds of discord and of strife. And so 
also, when the church has departed from her 
original principles, or become corrupt beyond 
the hope of recovery ; it is plainly both our 



'52 



the pastor's gift; or, 



duty and privilege to retire and seek a home 
elsewhere. " Salt is good, but if the salt 
has lost its saltness, wherewith will ye season 
it?" 

Should, however, either of the causes 
named, press upon our minds the thought of 
a separation from the church of our previous 
choice, we should not take this important 
step, till after much earnest prayer and ma- 
ture consideration. It is sometimes vastly 
more easy to give up old and long cherished 
opinions, than to fix upon new and more cor- 
rect. And it would seem strange, if the 
great majority of the church are in the 
wrong, while we, as individuals, remain in 
the right. Or allowing the church itself to 
be in the wrong, can it be so beyond the 
hope of recovery ? Such instances, however, 
may occur. We may find occasion to yield 
old principles and practices, and receive those 
which are new and different. A church may 
leave its former sentiment, become intolera- 
bly negligent, or dispairingly recreant. But 
if either one or the other occurs, it will only 
remain for us to act prayerfully, deliberately, 
calmly, conscientiously, and in the fear of 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 53 



God. If we withdraw, however, from one 
Christian communion, it should only be to 
unite with another. 

It is not then a matter of mere choice 
whether we remain in the church or not, af- 
ter we have once, deliberately and under- 
standingly, entered its sacred fold. Except 
in extreme cases, both interest and duty are 
in favor of our remaining. Every consider- 
ation or motive, which, at first, led us to form 
this connection, now, with equal or greater 
force, urges us to maintain it. When we en- 
listed in the cause of Christ, it was for life 
— through evil report as well as good- 
Trials we must expect ; discouragements we 
should patiently endure. Christians (and 
ourselves included) are imperfect. Often 
their piety shines with a dim, if not with a 
doubtful flame. And yet Christians are "the 
light of the world." The church is but an 
imperfect body of imperfect members ; it is, 
however, an institution of God, and the moral 
hope of the world. It is Christ's ark of 
safety, in which to bear us over the stormy 
sea of life, and if we leave it, " where shall 
we go?" 

5* 



54 



the pastor's gift; or, 



We have alluded to the fact that member- 
ship is often lost by a change of residence. 
Here there is a very common and very great 
wrong. Churches and pastors fail to instruct 
their members, and members misunderstand 
and disregard duty, and thus suffer their use- 
fulness to be impaired, if they do not utterly 
backslide and bring a stain upon their pro- 
fession. If a member leaves home for a few 
months only, let him take from his pastor, or 
the clerk of his church, a letter of introduc- 
tion and solicitation of privilege where he 
may go. This will introduce him to suitable 
associates, and preserve him, perhaps, from 
many a temptation, and many a snare. If 
he changes his residence with a view to per- 
manency, let him also change his church re- 
lation, provided he goes where this can be 
done consistently. This is required alike by 
his own religious interest, and by his duty to 
himself and to the cause of Christ. "We 
know that a commendable attachment to the 
church of our first enjoyment, and this alone, 
often prevents this change of relation. But 
if attachment govern us here, it will be to 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 55 

our own injury, and to the injury of the Sa- 
viour's cause. 

Sometimes members are without any fixed 
residence. In all such cases they should 
write to their church as often as once a year, 
if they are not permitted to visit within that 
time. This will assist in keeping up their 
interest in religion, and will serve to extend 
and strengthen the affection of the church 
for them. Naturally inclined, as we are, to 
become absorbed in worldly things, and sur- 
rounded also by influences which are ever 
prone to draw us aside, the more we have to 
check our wrong tendencies and to awaken 
and promote religious zeal, the more safe and 
happy it will be for us. 



56 



THE PASTOR'S GIFT; OR, 



CHAPTER III. 

PRAYER 



THE DESIGN OF PRATER. 

Prayer is a word which ought to sound 
pleasantly in the ear of every intelligent 
creature. It is a dictate of nature. It is 
the spirit and the life of piety. In proof of 
Paul's conversion it was early said of him, 
"Behold, he prayed/' So it is with all re- 
newed persons. Find one who has recently 
been "born of the Spirit," and you may 
know that his life is one of prayer. Prayer 
is the natural breathing of the renewed soul. 
Religion began leads to prayer, it strength- 
ens and matures by prayer, and, at last, when 
its work is done here below, it breathes out 
itself, in the language of Stephen, "Lord 
Jesus, receive my spirit.' ' Prayer is a duty, 
the importance of which cannot be too strong- 



OUTLINES OP CHRISTIAN DUTY. 57 



ly enforced. It is a privilege, the value of 
which we cannot too highly prize. 

But to speak more directly of the design 
of prayer ', we suppose it to be twofold; viz.: 
to secure a constant benign influence, and to 
obtain special favors. 

Prayer, in the first place, secures a benign 
influence to those who offer it. We are crea- 
tures of susceptibilities, and the mind, as a 
mirror, reflects the image of whatever ap- 
proaches it. And it not only reflects this 
image, but, like the daguerreotype plate, re- 
tains the image, impressed distinctly on its 
own surface. Each person with whom we 
are frequently associated, contributes largely 
to our own formation of character. So it is 
with God, as an object of worship, and as a 
Being w T ith whom we associate in frequent 
private and^ public communion. Our inter- 
course with Him impresses His image on our 
hearts, and moulds our characters into a like- 
ness to His. It expands and corrects our 
views, sanctifies our feelings, holds us back 
from sin and urges us to virtue. It cannot 
be otherwise. Let a man have correct ideas 
of the Supreme Being, and often come into 



53 



the pastor's gift; or, 



His presence by earnest and fervent suppli- 
cation, and he will grow in all that can adorn 
the Christian name. His character will be 
moulded into conformity with the Divine im- 
age, and he will fast ripen for heaven. As 
in the instance of Moses, when he came down 
from the mount, the brightness of his coun- 
tenance will show with whom he has convers- 
ed. Or as it was with the early disciples, 
• from his very appearance, men will take 
knowledge of him that he has "been with 
Jesus." If there was no such thing as an- 
swer to prayer, its moral influence on those 
who offer it, would be one of the richest of 
blessings. 

But prayer secures to us not only a strong 
and happy influence, but special and extraor- 
dinary favors. Of this no one can doubt, 
who reads and believes the Bible. It is one 
of the plainest and most prominent senti- 
ments of the sacred page. It is taught in the 
Old Testament, and re-enjoined in the New. 
Even those blessings which God has designed 
to give, He will give only in answer to prayer. 
And beyond this, He has never said unto us, 
" Seek ye my face in vain." And our Sa- 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 59 

viour " spake a parable, unto this end, that 
men ought always to pray, and not to faint." 
And further still, and as if there should be 
lacking nothing to make our assurance the 
most complete, we are permitted to read 5 
" Ask and it shall be given you ; seek and 
ye shall find ; knock and it shall be opened 
unto you. If ye then, being evil, know how 
to give good gifts unto your children, how 
much more shall your heavenly Father give 
the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him." 
There is no truth in Scripture more clearly 
taught than that of the strong efficacy of 
prayer. "Let us therefore come boldly unto 
the throne of grace, that we may obtain 
mercy and find grace to help in the time of 
need." 

But while we are thus encouraged to pray, 
let us remember, that to have prayer success- 
ful, it must be sincere — the pure offering of 
the heart ; it must arise from a proper mo- 
tive ; it must be for objects which it would 
be consistent for God to give ; and it must 
be attended with corresponding conduct. " If 
I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will 
not hear me." And " He that turneth away 



60 



the pastor's gift; or, 



his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer 
shall be an abomination.' ' 



SECRET PRAYER. 

This exercise seems to have been observed 
from the earliest ages of man. We may 
date it back, probably, to the garden of Eden, 
to those hallowed scenes, in which, previous 
to the fall, God met Adam and conversed 
with him face to face. Abraham had his 
hours of private devotion ; " Isaac went out 
to meditate in the field at even-tide." Jacob 
"wrestled" alone in prayer, " until the 
breaking of day." And Moses and the 
prophets prayed often in secret. And so did 
Christ and those who followed Him. Our 
Redeemer frequently retired for private de- 
votion to "the wilderness, — the mountain," 
or "the garden." Nathaniel was observed 
"beneath the fig-tree." "Peter went up to 
the house-top to pray." Paul's supplications 
were heard in the silent hours of " night; " 
and it was while in prayer on the lone island 
of "Patmos," that John received his most 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 61 

sublime of revelations. With all these ex- 
amples before us, well may we be persuaded 
to follow the divine and positive injunction, 

" Enter into thy closet, and when thou hast 
shut the door , pray to thy Father which is in 
secret." 

This duty of secret prayer, is one that is 
every way appropriate. It is an instinct of 
a reflecting mind. It is a natural develop- 
ment of our renewed natures. It is a spon- 
taneous act of pure Christian affection. 
Solemn thought leads to it. We are drawn 
to it by our interest and our hope in God. 
And as it is with intimate friends, or with 
child and parent, so it is with the disciple and 
his Saviour : with the Christian and his God. 
There are often feelings to be expressed, 
confessions to be made, and requests to be 
offered, too private to be known by others, 
and too sacred for any ear, except the ear of 
One. The closet, or the chosen retreat for 
private devotion, is the fit place for this 
sacred communion. It is here that we are 
withdrawn from the gaze and fear of man. 
It is here that we are the most fully secluded 
from the influences of the world, and it is 
6 



62 



the pastor's gift; OR, 



here that we are least distracted with the 
cares of this world, and have the least to 
hold us back from the near approach to God. 
All is silent, solemn, and sacred. Our com- 
munion is with the "Father," and "with 
the Son," and with the "Holy Ghost." It 
is in private devotion that our piety may be 
most fully tested. It is in this that our feel- 
ings are most deeply impressed and sancti- 
fied, and it is here that we are best prepared 
to go forth and mingle in the busy scenes of 
life, and, with fidelity, sustain the demeanor 
and discharge the duties of the Christian. 

In connection with secret prayer, we should 
often, if not always, include the reading 
of the Scriptures and personal meditation. 
Reading will prepare us to reflect, and reflec- 
tion will lead us to pray. "As I was mus- 
ing," says the Psalmist, "the fire burned. 
Then spake I with my tongue, Lord, make 
me to know mine end, and the measure of 
of my days, what it is, that I may know how 
frail I am." The reading and the reflecting 
man can hardly refrain from prayer. 

In addition to the Bible, it would be well 
to have some other closet assistant) a verse 



OUTLINES OP CHRISTIAN DUTY. 63 

or two, or a page or two of which might be 
read with profit. Stow's Daily Manna, Jay's 
Exercises for the Closet, Baxter's Saint's 
Best, and the Pilgrim's Progress, are suit- 
able volumes for this exercise. 

But how often, we may be asked, shall we 
observe this duty ? To this inquiry we can 
give no answer that will admit of universal 
application. Something must depend upon 
time and circumstances, and something on 
our present feelings, depressions and trials. 
The more we are afflicted, the more we 
should pray. But in no case should we al- 
low our seasons of private devotion to be less 
than once or twice each day. Daniel would 
not fail to go into his chamber and " kneel 
upon his knees three times a day, and pray 
and give thanks." Says David, " Evening, 
morning and noon will I pray and cry aloud, 
and He shall hear my voice." And says 
another, " Seven times a day do I praise 
thee, because of thy righteous judgments." 

In observing the duty before us, it is im- 
portant that we have stated seasons. Unless 
this is the case, there is danger lest the ex- 
ercise be omitted, or deferred from time to 



64 



the pastor's gift; or, 



time, until it is at last entirely neglected. 
Our own sluggish feelings, fatigue, company, 
press of business, or other kindred causes, 
will intervene, plead for neglect, and crowd 
out and crowd down the duty, if not quite 
banish the thought of it. This danger is 
imminent, and can be effectually guarded 
against only by regularity and promptitude. 
Let an hour each day, therefore, be selected 
and consecrated to secret devotion. Let this 
be done, and let the hour be carefully ob- 
served, and eventually, when it arrives, like 
the regular periods for our meals, or rest, it 
will of itself remind us of the duty and invite 
to its observance. And more than this ; the 
feelings awakened by the recurrence of the 
hour, will hardly allow us to rest till the 
duty is performed, so strong is the influence 
of habit. 

But a stated place, as well as a stated hour, 
is important. The principle of association, 
in the mind, is ever prompt and strong. The 
spot in w r hich we first indulged a hope in the 
Redeemer's mercy is never forgotten, and sel- 
dom, if ever, do we pass it, without having a 
new impulse given to our religious feelings. 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 65 

So it is in regard to the baptismal and other 
scenes of former deep interest. We can 
scarcely visit or even pass them without be- 
ing reminded of former precious hours, and 
having reawakened and placed in new and 
more vigorous exercise, former hallowed reso- 
lutions. And not only so, but the spirit cher- 
ished on those occasions will be reawakened 
in our bosoms and increased in power. So 
it will be in regard to a stated place for 
prayer. If we have one of this character it 
will be to us one of peculiar interest. It will 
become consecrated with holy associations — 
a place in which it will be "good for us" 
often to be — " a bethel — the house of God 
— the gate of heaven." It assumes the char- 
acter of a speaking witness, and we have only 
to visit it in order to have former emotions 
revived, and be put in an interesting frame 
of devotion. 

But, reader, have you your stated time and 
place for secret prayer ? And do you daily 
perform your duty according to your appoint- 
ment? If so, then as you have began, so 
do. Let your seasons remain fixed. Let 
them be considered as consecrated time; 
6* 



66 the pastor's gift; or, 



time to be encroached upon by nothing which 
you can control. Let them be observed too, 
with the most conscientious exactness. Your 
piety, and even your outward character as a 
Christian, depend much on this duty. When 
you often and sincerely pray in secret, you 
are comparatively safe. But the moment this 
duty is neglected, danger begins. It is in the 
desertion of the closet that religious declen- 
sion and fall more frequently commences. 
Unfaithfulness here leads to unfaithfulness 
elsewhere, and when we have once commenced 
a down-hill course, we know not where it will 
lead us. 

And does some one read these pages, even 
some professing Christian, who lives without 
secret prayer ? My friend, by such conduct 
you are doing a great wrong, and are allow- 
ing yourself to experience an irreparable loss. 
We entreat you to change your course, to en- 
ter upon this duty at once in sincerity, and 
with a firm resolution. Let no vain excuse 
whatever deter you. Select your time. Se- 
lect the one in which you can best attend to 
the exercise, and observe it with the least li- 
ability to interruption, and then act without 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN BUTT. 67 



fainting or failure. Without this you cannot 
hope to retain your religious interest* With 
it expect to be blessed. 



Family prater. 

That which has always been observed as a 
duty, seldom need be taught as such. It is 
naturally observed as a matter of course. 
Thus it seems to have been in regard to di- 
vine worship in general. Its origin dates far 
back prior to that of the Bible, and hence, as 
an institution, the Bible had no occasion to 
establish it directly. It found men every 
where worshiping something, and hence had 
only to direct what to worship and how to 
worship. 

To a like origin we must trace the more 
specific duty of family worship. The Sacred 
volume no where positively enjoins it, and, 
for this obvious reason ; it found it already 
existing. It seems to have grown out of the 
fitness of things, and its very reasonableness, 
doubtless, prompted to its early, and perhaps 
unbidden observance. Hence among the hea- 



68 the pastor's gift; or, 

then, "the household gods/' and among the 
Jews and the early Christians, " the family- 
altar 5 J were early and extensively, if not uni- 
versally found. 

But, though family prayer is not directly en- 
joined in the Bible, it is indirectly alluded to 
and abundantly sustained. This is done by the 
practice of Abraham, in erecting his frequent 
altars — by God's approving of his conduct 
in teaching his children and his household — 
by the establishment of the daily sacrifice — 
by the resolution of Joshua — and by the 
example of Job and Daniel. The duty is al- 
so implied and encouraged, when we are 
taught to pray for " our daily bread — always 
to pray- — pray without ceasing — pray one 
for another " — and to bring up our children 
" in the nurture and admonition of the 
Lord." In carrying out the spirit of these 
injunctions, how appropriately comes in the 
exercise of family worship. Indeed, how 
can we fully carry out this spirit, and not have 
it embrace this exercise ? 

The family altar then, is something which 
should he found in every house, of which the 
head is a professor of religion. Yea, more ; 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 69 

it should be found in every house in which 
there is a family, for all are alike the crea- 
tures of God, and all are alike depending 
upon him, even for their very breath. This 
altar is but the due acknowledgment of the 
great Creator and Preserver of men. It is 
but an appropriate monument of gratitude for 
the past and hope for the future. The hours 
spent around it are holy time. Its scenes 
are the most sacred and impressive. The 
anticipation of its services puts a strong check 
on the first rising of any improper feelings 
on the part of the family head. The per- 
formance of them calms and soothes the dis- 
turbed and anxious mind, awakens salutary 
reflections, and refreshes and strengthens 
true domestic affection and every Christian 
grace. The same happy influence which it 
exercises over the social head, extends also to 
children, domestics, and all inmates and visi- 
tors. So great and salutary are the influ- 
ences of this exercise, that no one, and es- 
pecially no Christian, who stands at the head 
of a family, can possibly justify himself in 
neglecting it. And there is not only this 
natural, necessary, and desirable influence, 



TO 



the pastor's gift; or, 



but it has the assurance of special Divine fa- 
vor. The incense of this altar goes up with • 
acceptance before God, and in return His 
spirit descends to impress deeply and render 
hallowed the delightful scene. "For them 
that honor me, I will honor," is a precious 
and encouraging promise. The family of so- 
cial piety will be a family of social blessings. 

With prayer in the family, we naturally 
and appropriately connect the reading of the 
Scriptures. In this exercise it is highly de- 
sirable that each member take part. This 
will serve to fix attention, and cause each one 
to feel that the duty is one in which he has 
an interest. 

And with the reading of the Scriptures and 
prayer, we would unite singing, whenever 
those are present who can join in it. This 
is, in itself, a pleasing and delightful art, and 
whenever it can be added to the other exer- 
cises of the domestic altar, it will be found to 
give new charms to the occasion. It will in- 
terest all and especially the young. The 
power of music to move the mind, correct the 
sentiments, and improve the heart, is seldom 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 71 

realised. It has scarcely an equal in these 
departments, and the importance of often 
employing the gift, can hardly be too fully 
felt. Find a family in which parents and 
children are accustomed to sing together 
around the family altar, and frequently at 
other times, and you will nearly, if not inva- 
riably, find a family of unusual interest. The 
exercise cultivates amiableness of disposition, 
good feeling, and mutual affection and confi- 
dence. Let, then, every parent to whom God 
has granted the power to sing, use this power 
for the instruction, entertainment, and im- 
provement of his children. 

In addition to family prayer, there is an- 
other and similar duty which should be ob- 
served. This is a religious service at table. 
Like family prayer, this seems to be a self- 
evident and a self-prompted duty, and, though 
no where taught by direct precept, was in 
common use among the Jews before the 
Christian era, and, to some extent, prevailed 
among heathen nations. The practice is fre- 
quently sanctioned by the Saviour's example, 
and is indirectly urged by the precept of 



72 



the pastor's gift; or, 



Paul, to give thanks "in every thing," and 
should ever be observed as an imperative and 
sacred duty. 

As we have said in regard to private devo- 
tion, so we say in regard to that of the fam- 
ily ; let the exercise be regular and constant 
Let it be an established domestic arrange- 
ment ; let each member of the family so un- 
derstand it, and let each one know that he is 
expected and required to be present. No or- 
dinary business ; no presence of neighbors or 
strangers ; no imaginary want of time ; no 
distrust of abilities; nor any thing of the 
kind, should be permitted to intervene or di- 
vert us from the duty — no, not for a day. 
It is one that is sacred and binding. It is 
one which we owe to God, ourselves, our fam- 
ilies, and our religion. True, it may be at 
times humiliating to commence it, and to per- 
form it, under certain circumstances, may re- 
quire self-denial and fortitude. Custom, how- 
ever, will soon render the exercise easy. Di- 
vine grace will enable us to rise above every 
obstacle, while we shall ever find the faithful 
discharge of the duty a source of pleasure, 
and attended by the Divine favor. Reader, 



OUTLINES OP CHRISTIAN DUTY. 73 



are you a husband; are you a father; or do 
you, in any way, stand at the head of a fam- 
ily? then be sure to discharge the duties 
named in this Section. Neglect here is in- 
gratitude. It is sin. It is an irreparable 
loss to yourself, and to all who are connected 
with you. Indulge not the thought, on any 
consideration, of dispensing with so important 
and sacred an observance. 



SOCIAL PRAYER. 

Meetings for this observance are the natu 
ral results of the mutual feelings, sympathies, 
wants, and faith of the truly pious. Hence 
they date back far anterior to the Christian 
era. We have no special command for, or 
account of, their first institution. But though 
social prayer may exist without known or es- 
pecial Divine appointment, it does not exist 
without special Divine approbation. Of old, 
those who "feared the Lord spake often one 
to another ; and the Lord hearkened and 
heard it; and a book of remembrance was 
written for them that feared the Lord, and 
7 



74 



the pastor's gift; ok, 



thought upon his name." Our Saviour say§> 
" Where two or three are gathered together 
in my name, there am I in the midst oi 
them." And it was upon the day of Pente- 
cost, when the early Christians " were all 
with one accord in one place/ 7 and where 
they had long continued " in prayer and sup- 
plication/' that a most glorious answer was 
received. The Spirit descended upon them 
like " a mighty rushing wind," and they were 
" filled with the Holy Ghost/' And that the 
church may continue in this early and abund- 
antly blessed exercise, the earnest injunction 
of the apostle to Christians is, that they neg- * 
lect not " to assemble themselves together as 
the manner of some is/' and that they " ed- 
ify one another/' and "pray one for an- 
ther." 

We should pray in our closets and in our 
families, but we need also the blessing of so- 
cial prayer. Such prayer is one of our most 
important means of grace. Preaching may 
enlighten and correct the understanding, but 
social prayer more fully reaches the wants of 
the heart. The first is indeed important, but 
the second is scarcely less so. It is as "the 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 



75 



small rain" which causes to germinate the 
seed previously sown. The Christian who is 
often seen in the prayer meeting, and sincere- 
ly and actively engaged in its exercise, is 
usually the growing Christian. As on an 
early occasion those who are together, are 
often permitted to see the Lord, and their 
hearts are made glad, while those who un- 
necessarily absent themselves, like the doubt- 
ing Thomas, are neither blessed themselves, 
nor willing to believe that others have been. 

But in social prayer, not less than that 
which is in private and in the family, system 
is required. Here some Christians are 
strangely inconsistent At one time it is to 
go constantly, and at others not at alL But 
both of these extremes are wrong* The one 
leads to surfeiting and cousequent reaction, 
and perhaps to an utter distaste for all reli- 
gious exercises* The other tends to spiritual 
poverty and ends in famine. Our religious 
nature, like our physical, needs its regular 
and constant aliment- Too much is injurious, 
but none at all is fatal. We would not, by 
any means, precisely fix the number of prayer 
meetings, up to which every Christian should 



76 the pastor's gift; or ; 

come, and beyond which no one should go, 
Very far from this. Here very much must 
depend on individual circumstances. The du- 
ties of the Sabbath, however, seem hardly 
complete, without having some part of the 
day or evening, devoted to social prayer. 
And then in addition to the usual services of 
the^Sabbath, each Christian seems to need 
the influence of at least one prayer meeting 
during the week. Such a meeting furnishes 
a desirable, if not a necessary refreshing sea- 
son between those of the successive Sabbaths. 
Allow me, then, Christian reader, kindly but 
earnestly, to urge this subject upon your at- 
tention. Have your weekly season or sea- 
sons consecrated to social prayer. Do not 
say you have not the time for this. Take 
the time. Do not say that you are too much 
fatigued to do it. If your time is at your 
own control, so arrange your labors that nei- 
ther work nor fatigue will hinder you. No 
Christian has a right to immerse himself so 
deeply in business that he cannot attend to 
the necessary duties of religion. We are to 
" seek first the kingdom of God and his right- 
eousness," and then all other things neces- 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 



77 



sary v, ill follow in their natural order. We 
have ample time for every duty, if no one 
duty is permitted to infringe on the just 
claims of others. 

In this Section, thus far, we have spoken of 
prayer simply. Of course we would have 
united with prayer other kindred and appro- 
priate exercises, as the reading of the Scrip- 
tures, their explanation, exhortation and sing- 
ing. And before dismissing the point before 
us, allow me to add, that, in order to have a 
prayer meeting, or one for exhortation and 
conference, there must be those to pray, ex- 
hort, or confer. Hence arises the duty not 
only of being present, but of taking an active 
part also. And if this is the duty of one, 
why not of another, and of another, and in- 
deed of all ? It may be the obligation of some 
to be more forward than others, but we know 
not on what principle any one can claim entire 
exemption. And we know of no excuse for 
those who are ever complaining of the want of 
interest in their social meetings, while they 
have yet to contribute their own first item of 
interest beyond what their mere and rare 

presence excites. Why complain of others 
7* 



78 



THE PASTOR'S GIFT; OR, 



for neglecting what we neglect ourselves ? 
Rather let each Christian, not only be pres- 
ent in the prayer meeting, but let him also 
be ready to assist, if necessary, in rendering 
that meeting interesting and profitable. 



FEMALE PRAYER MEETINGS. 

It is generally understood, that in the com- 
mon prayer meeting, females hare the same 
privileges as the other sex. But beyond this, 
it seems desirable that they should have 
separate seasons for social devotion of their 
own. They often have more leisure than 
men, and in an interview exclusively theirs, 
they can have a freedom and an interest, 
which they can hardly hope for in a promis- 
cuous assembly. We would therefore in all 
cases, in which it can be done consistently, 
urge Christian females to establish and main- 
tain a separate meeting of their own. In 
doing this they will ever find an abundant 
reward. And while they are thus benefitting 
themselves, like the praying few on the quiet 
banks of the Phillippian stream, they may 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 79 

call down the blessing of God on the place 
of their residence, or upon the church of 
which they are members. 

Christianity has done much for woman. 
It has raised her up from a more than brut- 
ish degradation, placed her on an equality with 
man, and given her privileges and immuni- 
ties quite unknown in any country before its 
introduction into it. It therefore has a spe- 
cial claim upon her devotion, and we are 
happy to say that this claim has not been 
unheeded. From the first to last she has 
stood by the Gospel, as its warmest and firm- 
est friend. She early bathed the Saviour's 
feet in tears of gratitude, and in the darkest 
hour has ever firmly clung to His cross. So 
it should be now and always. 

We have spoken of ordinary female prayer 
meetings. But before leaving this subject, 
we wish to say a word in regard to special 
prayer among mothers, or Maternal Associa- 
tions. Each one, without doubt, is fully 
aware of the frequent existence of such cir- 
cles. They are composed chiefly or exclu- 
sively of mothers, and are especially design- 
ed for mutual consultation and prayer in 



80 



the pastor's gift; or, 



reference to their own offspring. They seem 
every way appropriate, and can be hardly 
commended or valued too highly. Mother ! 
How charming is that name ! How many fond 
associations cluster around it. It awakens 
feelings and interests which no other word 
can. The mother occupies a position un- 
rivaled in its honor and influence. It is 
hers to rear the body, shape the mind, form 
the character, and, under the blessing of 
God, to save the soul. How pleasing, and 
yet how responsible is her station. And in 
the discharge of her duties, how much does 
she need aid from her senior associates, and 
wisdom from above. And how natural and 
appropriate it is for those who have the care 
of children, and realize the interest and re- 
sponsibility of their duties, to unite in asso- 
ciation, in which these can be made the 
themes of frequent and special conference, 
and the subjects of mutual and earnest sup- 
plications. It would seem that every mother 
must see the desirableness of something of 
this kind. And if there is such an associa- 
tion near her, would gladly unite with it, and 
if there is not, would be forward in forming 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 81 

one. Let me entreat every mother to do 
this. If \ye can not urge the special com- 
mand of God as a reason for this, we can 
urge a conscious responsibility, good feelings, 
and a sound judgment. If the other duties 
of her station will not allow her to attend 
such an association weekly, let her do it 
monthly, and if not monthly, quarterly, and 
if not quarterly, yearly. The welfare of her 
children should be a mother's first care. 
Every other temporal good should yield to 
this. Her children are her pride, her hope, 
her glory, and her joy. Let her then be 
faithful to her high and pleasing trust, and 
thus make those committed to her charge, 
blessings to herself, to the church, and to the 
world. 



THE PASTOR'S GIFT; OR, 



CHAPTER IV. 

PEIVATE PERSONAL VIRTUES. 



FILIAL AND FRATERNAL VIRTUES. 

By filial virtues we mean those which 
should show themselves in the conduct of 
children towards their parents or guardians. 

It is in the domestic circle that our piety 
first and most fully develops itself. It is 
here that we come into the nearest contact 
with others, and that the true shades of our 
character are earliest and most correctly 
seen. For these reasons, therefore, we may 
more deeply feel the force of the apostle's 
exhortation to the young, u Let them learn 
first to shew piety at home, and to requite 
their parents." If religion is not seen in a 
child as a child, it is of little worth. True, 
some youths are, apparently by the gifts of 
nature, or by the force of education, all that 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 83 

We could desire. They are affectionate? 
amiable, respectful, obedient and kind, — 
justly the parents' joy and hope. But how- 
ever this may have been previous to a pro- 
fession of religion, there should be no want 
of it here after this* Our parents hold to us 
a relation which no other persons can, and if 
true to their trust, we owe to them more than 
to all the world besides, They have, there- 
fore, an evident and just claim upon us. Be- 
ing the agents of our existence^ the support- 
ers of our helpless infancy, and the guides 
of our inexperienced youth, they have a 
right to our early gratitude, affection, and 
obedience, and to our subsequent love, re- 
spect, and kindness. Any want of constancy 
or of fidelity here, would be contrary to na- 
ture. It would be an indelible stain on our 
professed piety. Yea, more : it would be a 
strong proof that that piety consists only in 
mere words. " Honor thy father and thy 
mother, 5 ' is the solemn command of the Old 
Testament. " Children, obey your parents 
in all things/' and kindly and fully " requite ,? 
them, are the ever to be remembered injunc- 
tions of the New. This is the "first" re- 



84 



THE PASTOR'S GIFT; OR, 



quirement "with a promise," and to make it 
more imperative and pleasing, we have the 
example of our Saviour. In His youth He 
was " subject " to His parents, and in His 
last hour, He seems to forget His own suf- 
ferings, while He commends His mother to 
the special care of John, that most amiable 
and affectionate of all His disciples. 

In the pious youth, then, should be found 
an example of all that is obedient, respect- 
ful, affectionate or kind towards parents, 
guardians or teachers. And towards our pa- 
rents this should continue, not only through 
our minority, but while they and while we 
live. Especially should this be the case amid 
sickness or the infirmities of age. And 
should it be that poverty, and perhaps ex- 
treme necessity, is the lot of our parents, 
there should be no lack on our part, so far 
as it is in our power, to supply it. In our 
infancy and youth we have drawn our lives 
from theirs, and so, in sickness and age, if 
need be, they should be permitted to experi- 
ence a like favor in return. A son or a 
daughter who would neglect a father or moth- 
er in the hour of necessity, is unworthy the 



OUTLINES OP CHRISTIAN DUTY. 85 

name of son or daughter, and much less to 
have joined with that name the sacred appel- 
lation of Christian. 

In close connection with filial virtue, there 
is another which may be termed fraternal, 
and which deserves a brief notice. It is the 
virtue which should show itself among chil- 
dren of the same parents. These hold a 
most intimate and interesting relation to each 
other, and therefore owe each other corres- 
ponding obligations. These are mutual affec- 
tions, kindness and anxiety to serve. " He 
that loveth not his brother, whom he hath 
seen, how can he love God, whom he hath not 
seen?" But few things have a worse savor 
than family quarrels. This is always true, 
but more prominently and painfully so, when 
these occur in connection with a profession 
of the high sentiments of Christian piety. 
Here dissention and strife should never be 
known. And here there should be not only 
the absence of all which is unpleasant, but 
the existence of all that is amiable and lovely. 
" Behold how good and how pleasant it is for 
brethren to dwell together in unity. " As 
the eyes and the hands are to each other, so 
8 



86 the pastor's gift; OR ; 

should sisters and brothers be, mutually 
watching over and assisting each other ? as 
occasion may require. 



SETTLEMENT IN LIFE. 

On this point we would call serious at- 
tention to three particulars. These are mar- 
riage, a location in life, and the immediate 
adoption of a full course of religious duties. 

First, Marriage, Says the apostle, "Mar- 
riage is honorable in all, and the bed unde- 
filed.' ' The marriage relation is one for 
which we were, in general, designed by our 
Creator. It is therefore a desirable relation, 
and if, after reaching the proper maturity, 
and having secured the necessary prepara- 
tions, we judiciously enter it, this will, doubt- 
less, contribute to our happiness, piety, and 
usefulness. The marriage relation, however, 
is not absolutely essential to a high degree 
of either, nor is it so desirable as to lead us 
to rush into it without preparation, judgment, 
or regard to consequences. A hasty and 
rash step here, may cloud in hopeless gloom, 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 87 

the entire of our future prospects. There is 
no act in life on which so momentous conse- 
quences are pending, and we must not, on 
our peril, allow ourselves to make it a mere 
matter of feeling or of blind choice. It 
should be one of deep forethought, candid 
consideration, and earnest prayer. And if 
we ever need the counsel of parents, or of an 
impartial and judicious friend, it is in the 
decision of this question, in which so much is 
involved. We say to the young, then, marry, 
if proper opportunity offers. But we say 
also, do not blind your eyes to inevitable con- 
sequences. Do not render your happiness 
and usefulness a nullity, nor voluntarily place 
yourself in circumstances in which you may 
entail upon others your own madly purchased 
misery. 

The question is sometimes asked, if it is 
lawful for a Christian to marry one who is 
not? We reply in the affirmative, and for 
two reasons. First, marriage is a social, 
rather than a religious institution. It is our 
right, privilege, and duty, as members of the 
human family, and not as members of the 
Christain Church. Secondly, to take other 



88 



the pastor's gift; or, 



grounds, would be to arraign our sentiments 
in opposition to the providence of God, and 
exclude from the rite a large portion of each 
sex. The number of the two born into the 
world are nearly equal, while that of females 
who profess Christian piety, is much greater 
than that of males. If, therefore, we forbid all 
marriages between church members and those 
who are not, we must, of necessity, doom to 
perpetual celibacy many of each class. But 
this would be opposed to the manifest design 
of Providence, and consequently wrong. We 
are aware it is often said be not " unequally 
yoked together with unbelievers. " In our 
view, however, this passage does not refer to 
marriage, and consequently proves nothing 
in relation to it. We know of no Scripture 
precept inconsistent with the views now 
stated. 

Should it be here asked, why the propor- 
tion of pious females is so much greater than 
that of males, a sufficient answer may be 
drawn from the fact of their greater influence 
as the mothers, teachers and guides of the 
young. It is woman that gives character to 
society, and therefore it is that a wise and 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 89 

kind Providence has so ordered what we see. 
The influence of a corrupt father is bad 
enough, but for what can we hope when 
mothers are irreligious and immoral ? 

We have spoken of what is morally lawful 
in marriage. But what is lawful and what 
is expedient or wise, are sometimes very dis- 
tinct questions. It may be lawful for a man 
to build his house on the summit of a tower- 
ing and well nigh inaccessible rock, but the 
wisdom of such a measure may well be ques- 
tioned. It may be lawful for us to take whom 
we will as companions, but the judiciousness 
or expediency of selecting some persons for 
this relation, is altogether different. The one 
we admit, the other we deny. We have no 
approval of mere blind affection. We have 
no belief in any fatal necessity of conceiving 
a strong passion for some mere apology of a 
human being, and then imagining that death 
must follow unless the worthless thing is 
possessed. The affections should be held in 
subjection to the reason, and we should allow 
ourselves to love only where we can do it with 
safety. In selecting companions our choice 
should fall only on those who possess good- 
8 * 



90 



the pastor's gift; or, 



ness of disposition, and a high sense of moral 
obligation ; those who are our equals, with 
whom we can enjoy the full rights of con- 
science, and, consequently, who are worthy 
of us, and with whom we can be happy. If 
to amiable and intellectual qualities there is 
added true and unaffected piety, this should 
be considered above all price. And in no 
case should we marry where there is the 
slightest reason to suppese that the received 
companion would ever wish to interfere with 
our natural and just rights of conscience. 
No one is at liberty to put himself, or her- 
self, in a position in which another will have 
both the power and the will to interfere be- 
tween the accountable creature and the re- 
tributive Creator. 

But marriage being determined upon, the 
next question is, where shall we choose our 
residence ? Upon this point many Christians 
are strangely thoughtlesss. They hastily 
connect themselves, an'd then light down in 
life, without regard to privileges, happiness, 
or usefulness. But why is this ? Why should 
they throw away their dearest privileges 
and themselves also ? It is true that circum- 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 91 

Stances often control this matter, and it is 
equally true that we can often control cir- 
cumstances. When the latter is the case, 
there are two things of high importance. 
These are desirable religious privileges and 
a reasonable hope of usefulness. If at liber- 
ty to choose, we should never think of fixing 
our residence in a place in which there is no 
present or future prospects of congenial re- 
ligious society. This should be the case, not 
as a matter of privilege only, but as one of 
duty also. For what right have we to place 
ourselves in circumstances in which we can 
not do what we are most strictly enjoined to 
do ? And by what right do we place our 
families in circumstances in which we can not 
bring them under the influence of the entire 
truth of Revelation ? 

But we are to look to our usefulness, as 
well as to the enjoyment of privileges. None 
of us should think of living to "himself" 
alone. We are to glorify God by obedience 
to Him, and by efforts to build up His cause. 
We may be useful, indeed, in any place, but 
evidently not equally so in all places. If 
located where there is no church of our own 



92 



the pastor's gift; or, 



faith, we shall be shorn of our proper and 
full strength. This must be the case, except 
we choose a place in which there is a call for 
a new society, and we have the influence and 
the means, which, if united with what is al- 
ready at hand, are adequate to establish and 
sustain one. Neither can we be so useful 
where there is a large and abundantly able 
church, as where the church is feeble and 
much needs aid. In the one case we sink 
down unnoticed in ths heavier side of the 
scales, and in the other, we turn the scales. 
It can not be, then, a matter of small impor- 
tance where we make our home for this life. 
Far otherwise, and let each Christian view it 
so, and act accordingly. 

But once settled in the marriage state, a 
full course of religious duties should be at 
once commenced. Marriage, and the first 
years following it, are among the last and 
strongest influences which give shape and 
shade to our characters, as men and women. 
What we are six months or a year after en- 
tering this relation, we shall usually be 
through the future of life. Habits then 
formed, and the course then adopted, will, 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 93 



with few exceptions, remain permanent. How 
important then, that we commence this char- 
acter-giving-period of our probation right. 
Interests beyond our power of conception de-_ 
pend upon it. Let every Christian, then, 
begin to live at this point, as he would at 
last cease to live. Let the family altar be 
at first erected. Let there be established a 
regular and undeviating course of private 
devotion. Let the same be true in regard to 
the usual services for the Sabbath, church 
meetings, and weekly seasons for prayer. 
And let all domestic, social, and business re- 
lations be formed and carried out on the prin- 
ciple that he is a Christian, is to live the life 
and die the death of - a Christian. Let this 
be done as he prizes his happiness for time. 
Let it be done as he values his interests for 
eternity. 



CONJUGAL VIRTUES. 

Of all the relations which we hold to each 
other in life, none is so near, sacred, or im- 
portant, as that of marriage. To form this 



94 



the pastor's gift; or, 



union, father, mother, brothers and sisters, 
and all are to be forsaken, and, in the expres- 
sive language of our Saviour, "they twain 
shall be one flesh.' ' From this oneness of 
flesh, or as we might say of person and of 
being, there naturally, necessarily and beau- 
tifully follows a oneness of interest, purpose, 
plan, aim, effort, and happiness. They are 
"no more twain," but one, one in every in- 
terest. Now in observing and carrying out 
this idea of a perfect oneness in bqjng and 
interest, is to be found the grand key to all 
connubial virtue and happiness. The duty 
and happiness of each is to be found in the 
united pursuit of a common good, and in the 
unwearied effort of each to make the other 
happy. The specific line of action for each 
may indeed lie in a different channel, but 
the tendency and aim is to be to the one 
and same common end. And inasmuch as 
a headship may sometimes be necessary, and 
inasmuch as the more is depending upon the 
husband in defending, providing, and accom- 
plishing, Nature and Revelation have confer- 
red this headship on the husband, and direct- 
ed the consequent due submission on the part 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 95 

of the wife. The feelings, however, the af- 
fairs, plans, purposes, and wishes of each, 
should be perfectly known to and coincided 
in by the other. There should never be se- 
crets between man and wife. The one ought 
to have, and justly can have, no interest 
whatever separate from the other, and re- 
membering that they are thus one in in- 
terest, effort and happiness, they will natu- 
rally and necessarily develop the choicest 
virtues of married life. These virtues will 
spring from this as the trunk, branches and 
fruit of the tree spring from the root. Let 
this ever be kept in the mind, and the hus- 
band and wife can hardly fail to be happy as 
such. 

We have thus far spoken upon this subject 
as though the parties, in the marriage con- 
tract, are equally " yoked," and each had the 
capacity and the disposition to meet and sus- 
tain the just proportion of life's cares and 
duties. And where this is the case, what we 
have said seems abundantly sufficient. But 
it sometimes occurs that such is not the ever 
desirable fact. The one party fails in ca- 
pacity, will, or fidelity, and thus forces the 



96 



the pastor's giet; or, 



other to annul, partially or wholly, this per- 
fect oneness of which we have spoken. If 
such is the painful fact, the ever to be desired 
sweetness and fulness of the marriage cup is 
impaired. The one party overburdens the 
other, and makes both unhappy. Minor in- 
discretions can be overlooked. This ever 
should be the case. Yes, very much is to be 
borne with and forgotten. But should the 
husband or wife prove utterly incompetent, 
or what is far worse, utterly unfaithful, the 
other, of necessity, is driven to a measure of 
secrecy and self-interest. Common knowl- 
edge, and a common purse would be the ruin 
of both. The degree of separation here 
must depend on the degree of the cause. It 
sometimes may go so far as to justify a sep- 
aration of homes, but only in the case of 
adultery do the Scriptures allow of a divorce. 

But it sometimes happens, that while all is 
equal and harmonious in temporal things, 
there is a difference of views and interest 
in religious things. So far as this difference 
then existed, it should have been guarded 
against, or provided for, before marriage. 
If, however, it subsequently arises, it must 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 97 

be met by a sound judgment, kind feelings, 
and in true Christian meekness. The con- 
siderate man or woman will respect and kind- 
ly regard the past, or newly adopted religi- 
ous views of a companion, though unable 
fully to share in them. But should the re- 
verse of this prove true, the utmost judicious- 
ness, circumspection, forbearance and kind- 
ness, are required on the part of the aggrieved, 
so that, by this means, the other party, if 
possible, may be won to the supposed truth. 
All should be yielded that can be done, in 
consistency with our views of revealed truth. 
There are points, however, beyond which 
neither Reason nor Scripture will allow us to 
go, and if worse comes to worse, it is better 
to disregard the wishes of a companion even, 
than to violate a solemn obligation to God. 
The positive claims of our Creator are par- 
amount to all others, and nothing is to be 
gained at any time, or in any way by vio- 
lating them. Let us not, however, rashly 
mistake our own wishes for God's law. 

It sometimes occurs that husband and wife 
are united, or feel it to be their duty, to 
unite with different churches. This is ever 
9 



98 



the pastor's gift; ok, 



undesirable? but still it is a matter of little 
consequence, and never need, and never should 
cause trouble. Just let each respect the views 
of the other, and according to mutual agree- 
ment, let each go to, and assist in supporting 
the chosen meeting, or let the time of at- 
tendance and the support given, be divided 
between the two. The latter, perhaps, is the 
more pleasant and desirable way. Any thing 
here, however, like exclusive selfishness, the 
abridging of individual rights, or tyranizing 
the one over the other, is wrong in a very 
high degree, and should never be even thought 
of for a moment. 



PAKE NT AL VIKTTJES. 

With the fact of becoming a parent are 
connected many fond and pleasing associa- 
tions. Children are but the diffusion of our 
own being — but the extension and the mul- 
tiplication of ourselves. To love them, there- 
fore, and to be anxious to do for them, is but 
an earnest instinct, both of nature and of 
piety. We need not, therefore, urge parent© 



OUTLINES Or CHRISTIAN DUTY. 99 

to this. It is something in which we are an- 
ticipated. Untaught and unbidden, it springs 
up warm and active in the bosom of every 
one. Taking it for granted then, that the 
parent will love its offspring, let us notice the 
manner in which this love should manifest 
itself, or the duties which grow out of the 
relations of the parent to the child. 

We say then, that first of all, the parent 
should endeavor to secure the child's full af- 
fection and confidence. This is of the ut- 
most importance. It is the parent's string 
of gold ; the kindly wand, with which he can 
charm the child into a cheerful compliance 
with his wishes. But to secure this, there 
must be uniform kindness on the part of the 
parent; there must be sympathy with the 
child in its little troubles; it must be often 
reasoned with rather than commanded, and 
thus be made to feel that its parent is its 
truest and best friend, and the one in whom, 
beyond all others, it can safely confide. 

This attachment and confidence being se- 
cured, it must be followed by a safe example. 
The young are imitative creatures. They 
copy from others, but from none so much as 



100 the pastor's gift; or, 

the parent. "What father does, and what 
mother says, is to the son or daughter the 
end of all dispute. It is the full liberty to 
act in the one case, or the sufficient prohibi- 
tion to forbear in the other. Nothing on the 
part of the parent escapes the child's notice. 
Every look and motion is observed, and, quick 
as thought, is marked as a plate after which 
to copy. If the parent is right, as a general 
rule, the child will be right also. If the 
former is wrong, we can expect but little less 
from the latter. How important then is cor- 
rect parental example. 

But with example is to be blended author- 
ity. The parent should govern the child. 
This is alike the decision of reason, affection 
and Scripture. The parent is responsible 
for the child's wants and early conduct, and 
hence his right and duty to exercise due au- 
thority. And this exercise of authority is 
required by the good of the child. Let the 
boy or the girl, early with impunity set at 
naught the paternal or maternal injunction, 
and the way is prepared for the man or wo- 
man to set aside all law, both human and 
divine. The example of Eli, here should be 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 101 



remembered as one of solemn warning, and 
that of Abraham as one of encouragement. 

In governing children, these few brief rules 
will be found of great service: a. Be not 
too rigid. L Often ask rather than enjoin. 
e. Often throw the child back upon its own 
good feelings, sense of right or justice, as- 
sisted, perhaps, by your own reasonings, 
rather than firmly direct by your positive 
command, d* Be uniform in your require- 
ments, e. Never threaten what you do not 
intend to perform. /. Be mild, but decided 
in all your positive requirements. 

But to make the proper exercise of author- 
ity more easy, and to render less occasion 
for any thing like correction, the child should 
be educated. Under this head we include 
both moral and mental instruction. At the 
earliest possible age, the tender and suscepti- 
ble mind should be strongly impressed with a 
deep sense of moral and religious obligation. 
It should be taught the proprieties of con- 
duct ; it should be led to discriminate care- 
fully between right and wrong, and to have 
clear and distinct views of what belongs to 
itself, its fellows and its God. Upon this 
9* 



102 the pastor's gift; OR ; 

latter point some think they have nothing to 
do, But such an idea is contrary to Scripture 
and reason. Says Solomon, " Train up a 
child in the way in which he should go, and 
when he is old he will not depart from it." 
And to this clear language of the Old Dis- 
pensation, we have added that impressive in- 
junction of the New, " Ye fathers, provoke 
not your children to wrath, but bring them 
up in the nurture and admonition of the 
Lord." The child will early embrace some 
views of religion, and consequently, if not ju- 
diciously taught those which are correct, gov- 
erned by his depraved nature, will be too 
certain to seize upon those which are wrong. 
If the former is done, these views may be an 
important moral safeguard in many a subse- 
quent danger. Tea, far more, they may lead 
him to Christ, and make him eminent for piety, 
virtue, and usefulness. If the latter should be 
the painful fact, his false principles may make 
the bad child, the worse man, and destroy the 
soul in the world to come. The parent should 
be guilty of no religious intolerance towards 
the child. Neither should he spare any reason- 
able pains in imbuing the mind of his inter 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 103 

esting charge with all the truths which he 
finds in the Word of God. In doing this, he 
should instruct the child upon the knee, as he 
stands or walks by his side, and as he bows 
with him in prayer. He may call to his aid 
the faithful pulpit, the Sabbath school, and 
the religious press. He not only may do 
this, but he is bound to do it by the most sol- 
emn of obligations. " Thou shalt teach them 
diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk 
of them when thou sittest in thy house, and 
when thou walkest by the way, and when 
thou liest down, and when thou risest up." 
Next after a bare sufficiency of food and 
clothing, the public institutions of the Gospel 
are of the first importance to the child. And 
we can hardly feel too sensibly the value of 
suitable moral and religious reading. It fur- 
nishes desirable employment and food to the 
mind, cultivates the heart, corrects the sen- 
timents, and enlarges and strengthens the 
judgment. Besides books, a good religious 
paper is ever desirable. And here some pa- 
rents are strangely inconsiderate. They will 
refuse to take a religious print, and at the 
same time furnish their children with one 



104 the pastor's gift; or, 

filled to the overflowing with the impurest 
kind of fiction/ Yes, we have known religious 
parents to do this, while grieving over the 
open disposition of their sons and daughters 
to scoff at all which is sacred. Such conduct 
is like deliberately poisoning the child and 
then grieving over its sickness. It is too 
manifestly wrong to need more than a mo- 
ment's calm reflection. Furnish the child 
with reading, but let it be such as will im- 
prove the heart and not corrupt it. 

But the child has an intellect as well as a 
heart, and while the one is cared for, the 
other is not to be neglected. It is the mind, 
including both the understanding and heart, 
which makes the man. It is this which raises 
him in the scale of being above the brute, 
and renders him capable of achieving such 
wonders. If, then, we teach the hands to 
labor, how much more the mind to think, to 
reason and to plan. The body must be re- 
garded first, so far as necessary food and 
clothing are concerned. But beyond the bare 
sufficiency of these, the means of a good mor- 
al and mental education are of the highest 
importance. We have alluded to the former, 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 105 

but the latter calls for consideration ; for at 
tention to it is a religious as well as a rational 
duty. On this point we often find a strange 
and painful inconsistency. Parents will en- 
slave themselves to dress their children gayly, 
to gratify highly, or to leave something for 
their future inheritance. They have time 
and money for every thing except schools and 
books. But a greater mistake can scarcely 
be made, and especially so by those who sin- 
cerely desire the highest good of their off- 
spring. We are far from advocating the idea 
that every man should endeavor to prepare 
his sons for one of the learned professions, 
and his daughters for mere fashionable belles 
or parlor ornaments. The education which 
we urge is the sound and the useful, that 
which strengthens the mind, matures the 
judgment, and qualifies its possessor to act 
with the more sure prospects of success what- 
ever part in life is assigned him. It is not 
labor only, but labor guided by a sound judg- 
ment which makes certain its object. But a 
proper education gives maturity and strength 
of judgment, and hence, in the end, it will be 
worth to the child, even in a pecuniary point 



106 



the pastor's gift; or, 



of view, vastly more than its cost. It will 
also open to him new and most extensive 
fields of enjoyment. It will not only make 
him wiser and happier, but more useful. 

It is then the parent's duty to furnish the 
child, as far as possible, both the time and 
the means of improving, to a high degree, its 
mental powers. And this should be the case, 
not only so far as mere schooling is concerned, 
but also in supplying suitable reading at 
home. We have alluded to that of a religious 
character. But however desirable this may 
be, it is of itself insufficient. The child wants 
a knowledge of history, philosophy, and the 
different arts and sciences. Furnish him with 
appropriate books, and teach him to occupy 
his time and amuse himself with these, and 
you can hardly estimate their value in pre- 
paring him for future success and eminence. 
And still more, you will thus have erected 
around his morals a most solid wall and made 
him strong within it. The young mind must 
have something with which to employ itself. 
If it has learned to spend its energies upon 
books, with these it will be satisfied. But if 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 10? 

the child has no taste for readings or, which, 
is almost as bad 5 no means of gratifying that 
taste, he Tfill be led to scenes of improper 
amusement, and perhaps of crime* Or if 
crime is early escaped, the way may be pre- 
pared for its future commission. 

We have urged the importance of reading 
for the child. But here let us give one cau- 
tion. This is against allowing him access to 
indiscriminate novel and fictitious publica- 
tions. This is worse, a thousand fold, than 
nothing. Instead of strengthening the mind ? 
such reading weakens it, It gives false views 
of life, and under ordinary circumstances, fills 
the heart with corruption and poison, and the 
head with delusive dreams and blighting er- 
rors. Allow the child day after day and 
week after week, to closet himself, and occu- 
py his attention solely with the histories of 
the vile, and with illusive tales of the imagi- 
nation, and you may be sure you are doing 
him an irreparable injury, if not preparing 
the way for his shameful and utter ruin, 
Give the young something with which he may 
pleasantly pass the time and feed the intel- 



I 



108 the pastor's gift; or, 

lect, but beware how with envenomed senti- 
ments and sugared poisons you create and 
foster an unnatural and dangerous craving. 

One other point in this connection, and a 
point of great importance, demands our at- 
tention. It is the training the child to habits 
of strict industry. We are no friends of the 
do-nothing system. We can have no sympa- 
thy with those who make it their pride and 
ambition to preserve their children in utter 
ignorance of every kind of useful employ- 
ment. Nothing can be more unwise or inju- 
rious. Industry is necessary to health of 
body, strength of mind, and energy and vir- 
tue of character. "An idle brain is the dev- 
il's workshop." Train up a child to a life 
of indolence, and the wicked one will soon 
furnish him with employment. It is worse 
than in vain for parents to deceive themselves 
here. It is to their own woe. Without in- 
dustry we cannot hope for morality, and with- 
out morality we can anticipate nothing, ex- 
cept the bringing down our own "gray hairs 
with sorrow to the grave." Admit that you 
are wealthy, and at present have no need of 
the fruit of toil. But, though rich to-day, 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 109 

you may be poor to-morrow ; and if not poor 
yourself, your children may become so, and 
are almost sure to do this, if left to habits of 
indolence, and to the consequent and almost 
irresistible tendency to dissipation. But to 
say nothing of what may be the future tem- 
poral wants of yourself or children, their 
moral ai^d intellectual welfare require this 
early industry. The grand secret of true 
greatness and happiness, is found in faithfully 
following some useful employment. Pleasure 
may answer for an occasional relaxation, but 
a life of pleasure is a life of vanity and of 
bitter sorrow. It is destructive to the great 
end of life, and to our capacity for true and 
rational enjoyment. We say nothing as to 
the kind of employment to which children 
should be educated. This should be referred 
to capacity, taste, and circumstances. But 
let them be taught to do something, some- 
thing in which they can find pleasure, and by 
which they may bless themselves and others, 
and glorify God. 

Much is often said about amusements for 
the young. To this we have no objections in 
itself considered, and provided the amusement 
10 



110 



THE PASTOR* S GIFT; OR, 



is of a proper character* Relaxation from 
common duties, and recreation amid new 
scenes and unaccustomed sources of pleasure, 
are not only harmless but highly desirable. 
They contribute to health of body, vigor of 
mind, and cheerfulness of disposition. Let 
children then have their hours for play. It 
is Nature's requirement. Let the young have 
their opportunities for social enjoyment, con- 
. fining it only to proper places and scenes, and 
guarding against adverse influences. It is the 
dictate of good feeling and common sense. 
Grant this, and we do it cheerfully, yet af- 
ter all, if the moral sentiments are properly 
trained, and habits of study and industry are 
judiciously formed, the parent will have but 
little trouble in regard to amusement for his 
children. They will find these and their 
pleasure also, in their books and employ- 
ment ; or if they occasionally wish for some- 
thing different, they will instinctively seek it 
in harmless and instructive sources, — in 
high-toned conversation, in attendance upon 
lyceums and lectures, or in botanical or min- 
eralogical excursions. 



OUTLINES OP CHRISTIAN DUTY. Ill 



VIRTUES WHICH ARISE FROM RELATIVE POSITIONS IN LIFE. 

We exist in a variety of circumstances. 
One is rich and another is poor ; one is 
learned and another is ignorant; one has 
great capacities and another small ; one man 
pursues this thing and another that. So it 
is. We cannot make it otherwise if we would ; 
we would not if we could. Things in this re- 
spect are as an overruling Providence has or- 
dained or permitted. Out of this variety of 
circumstances under which we live, arise that 
class of virtues to which we would now call 
attention. Among the more prominent of 
these, there are those which appropriately 
belong to the employer. Persons of this char- 
acter are often placed in positions of great in- 
fluence for good or for evil. But if the em- 
ployer is a Christian, he must be anxious to 
have his influence tell favorably upon the 
welfare of those under his direction. In en- 
deavoring to do this, let him, 

First, Remember that he is himself but a 



112 



the pastor's gift; or, 



man. He is but flesh and blood in common 
with those who are below him in life. He 
has the same Creator, the same infirmities, the 
same wants, must lie equally low in death, 
and, finally, must stand with them at the same 
judgment bar. In accordance with these 
feelings, he should recognize in them, and al- 
low them to recognize in him, a common hu- 
manity. To permit a little wealth or any 
other outward circumstance to make us proud, 
haughty, or oppressive in our bearing towards 
others, betrays a little mind and a bad heart. 
Just as though a man was made up of, or 
could be increased by such things. " The Lord 
hateth * * * a proud look — God resisteth 
the proud, but giveth grace to the humble." 

But passing from mere feeling to actions, we 
should exercise towards those in our employ 
the strictest justice. We should take no advan- 
tage of their ignorance or of their necessity. 
We should use no power we may have over 
them to oppress or to injure in any form or 
degree. "What mean ye that ye beat my 
people to pieces and grind the faces of the 
poor, saith the Lord, God of Hosts ? " " He 
that oppresseth the poor, reproacheth his Ma- 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 113 

ker." "Behold the hire of the laborers, 
which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth, 
and the cries of them which have reaped, 
have entered into the ears of the Lord of 
Sabbaoth." 

And yet more than justice is here required. 
We should act the part of benefactors. If 
necessary, we should give to our dependents 
timely and wholesome advice, and if they are 
young, we should encourage and aid them in 
improving their education and in preparing 
themselves for future usefulness. Above all, 
w r e should give them religious privileges, and 
affectionately seek their spiritual welfare. 
By such means we may add new charms to 
our own Christian characters, do great good, 
and perhaps may raise up those who may be 
friends to us in our own time of possible fu- 
ture need. " Blessed is he that considers th 
the poor. The Lord will deliver him in time 
of trouble. The Lord will preserve him and 
keep him alive ; and he shall be blessed upon 
the earth ; and thou wilt not deliver him 
unto the will of his enemies. The Lord will 
strengthen him on the bed of languishing : 
Thou wilt make all his bed in his sickness." 
10* 



114 



the pastor's gift; or, 



Many persons in this country have great 
difficulty in regard to that class of the em- 
ployed called help, or domestics. They are 
troubled to obtain and retain such as are suit- 
able. And there is too often a reason for 
this. Those thus troubled, are wont to treat 
their domestics as no one will be treated, ex- 
cept the low and worthless, and, therefore, 
none but the low and worthless can be ob- 
tained. As a natural consequence, such help 
is always giving trouble, the worst form of 
which is not unfrequently seen in the perni- 
cious influence which they exert over the 
young members of the family. But let em- 
ployers reverse their treatment of domestics ; 
pay them more liberally, do to them as they 
would be done by, and they will soon call in- 
to their service a different and a more capa- 
ble class. By this means they will relieve 
themselves of vast anxiety and care, have 
their work done more to their satisfaction, 
and secure a more desirable influence to their 
children. What good 'reason is there, or can 
there be, why the position of a domestic 
should not be made and considered an honor- 
able one ? And if there is any subordinate 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 115 

place which requires virtue, intelligence, and 
capacity, is it not in the family, where the 
subordinate naturally and necessarily holds 
an important position and exerts so great an 
influence ? In this particular people often 
have strange views, and are strangely blind 
to their own interest. Let different feelings 
be cherished, let a different policy be pursued, 
and the good results will soon follow. 

But the employed have their duties and ob- 
ligations, as well as the employer. If the 
former is our position, we may safely adopt 
for ourselves the following rules : 

a. Never engage our services where we 
shall be required to violate the Sabbath, 
or where we can not enjoy our natural rights 
and just and reasonable religious privileges. 
If we find ourselves inadvertently placed in 
such a position, we should embrace the very 
first suitable opportunity to leave it. No man 
has a right to step in between us and our 
Maker, and we have no right, for the sake of 
money, or for any other consideration, to 
concede to any one the power to do this. 

I. When we enter the employ of another, 
we should remember that we do this as sub- 



116 



the pastor's gift; or, 



ordinates, We are not indeed to feel that 
we are of a race inferior to those who are 
over us. We should cherish a proper self- 
respect, and this self-respect we should always 
and every where cautiously maintain. There 
is, however, an appropriate deference due 
from us to our employers. We do not go 
into their service to claim the full privileges 
and indulgence of children. We go to be, 
within certain limits, at their disposal, and to 
occupy ourselves for them. This should be 
done cheerfully and with fidelity. There 
should be no murmuring at our lot, or repin- 
ing that others are more favored than our- 
selves. We should rather strive to make the 
most of our present position ; and by useful 
reading, industry, and prudence, endeavor to 
raise ourselves to a position which is higher 
and more favorable. "Let your conversa- 
tion be without covetousness, and be content 
with such things as ye have ; for He hath 
said, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee. 
■ — Art thou called, being a servant ? care not 
for it ; but if thou mayest be made free, use 
it rather.' ' 

c. But, punctual and faithful in all that 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 117 

strictly belongs to our engagements, we may 
not hesitate to go beyond this and manifest 
our interest for our employers, by such acts 
of kindness as are in our power. Opportu- 
nities for this will especially present them- 
selves in the times of sickness. And while 
we should endeavor to make ourselves useful 
to them and add to their happinness, we 
should be equally careful to do nothing which 
could impair either. We should not be tale- 
bearers to nor fro. We should hold their 
feelings and reputation sacred. So should 
we do in regard to those of their families 
also. In a word, we should strive to make 
ourselves useful in a high degree, in our more 
humble position, and by this means, endeavor 
to win our way to the worthy regards of all, 
adorn our profession as Christians, and com- 
mend our religion to others. Often has the 
unaffected and consistent piety of the ser- 
vant, been greatly blessed to the family 
served. 

But there are other relations in life besides 
those of the employer and employed, and, 
consequently, virtues to correspond. These 
virtues are those which arise from the differ- 



118 the pastor's gift; or, 

ent ranks into which society is disposed. We 
may be in one of these ranks, or in another, 
and, possibly, we may be in different ranks 
at different times. But be our present posi- 
tion what it may, we should first learn " there- 
with to be content.' ' Says the apostle, 
"Wherefore, laying aside all malice and all 
guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and evil 
speakings, as new born babes, desire the sin- 
cere milk of the word, that ye may grow there- 
by, if so be ye have tasted that the Lord is 
gracious." And again, "Let us not he de- 
sirous of vain glory, provoking one another, 
envying one another." If we are in circum- 
stances above those around us, we should 
still remember that we are with them, mem- 
bers of one and the same great family. If 
we are below, we should harbor no envy, no 
ill-will, and no wish to pull them down to 
our level. If we can justly rise to theirs, 
well. But be this as it may ; by judicious 
efforts for self-improvement, careful industry, 
and unyielding integrity, we should endeavor 
to command their respect, and the respect of 
all. There is not, however, that great differ- 
ence in the real enjoyments of the various 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 119 

conditions in life, which might at first appear, 
or which many seem to suppose. We are 
formed with wonderful adjusting powers. Our 
wants adapt themselves to circumstances. If 
our means are limited, we can make our ne- 
cessities few. If our resources multiply, our 
demands usually keep full pace with them. 
With a little we may have a competency, 
and with the richest abundance, we may im- 
agine ourselves to be suffering from actual 
want. One man may be as much pleased 
with his possession of a single dollar, as an- 
other is with his hundred thousand, and even 
the same man, at one time, may have been 
happier with his bare sufficiency, than he is 
now with an overflowing abundance. The 
scanty meal of the peasant is often relished 
far better than the profuse redundancy of 
the prince. The possession and the cultiva- 
tion of the little is as ample in the satisfac- 
tion which it affords, as is that of the most 
extensive estates. We love to possess, and 
this love is gratified when our inheritance is 
small, and it can be no more than gratified, 
if the most extensive resources are ours. 
Our natural disposition is for more, and this 



120 the pastor's gift; or, 



disposition is usually the same, whether we 
have little or much, or as we proceed from 
the smallest acquisitions to those which are 
the most extensive* With contentment we 
may be happy under any circumstances, and 
without this we should be unhappy with the 
world at our command. Let not those then 
in one condition cherish improper feelings to- 
wards those in another. Let no one imagine 
that he possesses every thing and others 
nothing, or that he has nothing, while others 
have the gratification of every wish. Provi- 
dence is not thus partial in His distribution 
of bounties. Let no one class endeavor to 
encroach on the just rights of others, or 
abridge their resources of enjoyment. Let 
not one envy another. "Let nothing be 
done through strife or vain glory; but in 
lowliness of mind let each esteem others 
better than themselves." Let each class 
carefully regard the feelings of every other 
class. And let each render to the other all 
due esteem, and endeavor " by love to serve 
one another, and so fulfill the law of Christ." 
" All things whatsoever ye would that men 
should do to you, do ye even so to them ; for 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 121 

this is the law and the prophets." He is 
the most truly honorable who acts best the 
part assigned him here by Divine Providence, 
and, hereafter, we shall stand, not according 
to what we have here possessed, but accord- 
ing to the manner in which we have improved 
it. Death will soon level all present distinc- 
tions, while beyond death, the only pre-emi- 
nence will be the reward of merit. 



A CHEERFUL DISPOSITION. 

Different nations usually have something 
peculiar to themselves, which distinguishes 
them from each other, even to the stranger. 
So it is with the different occupations and 
professions of men. Each class has some- 
thing characteristic of itself, and which 
marks its members. Thus should it be with 
the Christian, His nation and his profession 
are peculiar, and he should ever have with 
him his badge of character — a certain some- 
thing in his appearance which should note 
him as a disciple of the Redeemer. This 
something should be, not a peculiarity of 
habit or dress — not a doleful tone of voice, 
11 



122 THE PASTOR'S GIFT; OR; 

or a somber moroseness of manner ; it should 
be cheerfulness. Conscious love and integ- 
rity should be stamped on his countenance. 
The image of Christ should be mirrored forth 
in his looks, and from this, men should be 
made to " take knowledge of him that he has 
been with Jesus." 

It is true that we often have much to make 
us sad. Our own imperfections, the sin of 
others, and the dangers to which they are 
exposing themselves, both for time and eter- 
nity, must often render the mind painfully 
solemn. But still a bright cheerfulness, a 
calm and holy resignation, should ever char- 
acterize the Christian. Religion was not de- 
signed to make us sad, nor has it any natural 
tendency to do this. It is cheerful in its 
character and influence. Its office is to mel- 
low the common asperities of life, assuage 
our griefs, and diffuse a charm and pleasure 
through all our devious paths. "While it may 
hold us back from boisterous mirth, and that 
" foolish talking [and] jesting which are not 
convenient," its province is to clothe the 
countenance with smiles, calm the feelings, 
and buoy up the spirits. Says the apostle, 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 123 



"Giving of thanks — always rejoicing — re- 
joicing in hope." Make the best of every 
thing. A peevish, fretful, sour-minded, and 
fault-finding Christian, is but a sorry charac- 
ter. He is unjust to his profession. He 
gives, in his very looks, a false representa- 
tion of piety, and drives men from it, instead 
of alluring them to it. This is obviously 
and entirely wrong. 66 The Lord reigneth, 
let the earth rejoice." And who should re- 
joice as much as the Christian ? At peace 
with God, and cherishing good will to man, 
he has the " promise of the life that now is 
and of that which is to come." Be not un- 
thankful, Christian reader, for what you have. 
Neglect not your duty nor privileges, and, 
thereby depriving yourself of the life, power 
and enjoyment of your religion, lead those who 
know you to suppose that your religion, and 
not yourself, is in fault. Be faithful and 
consequently happy. 



SELF-CONTROL. 

By self-control, we mean the subjecting of 



124 the pastor's gift; Oil, 



the outward conduct to the requirements of 
the Gospel. It is a putting off of the " old 
man," and an habitual wearing of " the new." 

In the life of Christ, His spirit, conversa- 
tion and conduct, there was nothing against 
which aught could be justly said. In this 
respect He is our " example," or, in the lan- 
guage of Paul, we are to "keep under the 
body and bring it into subjection." We 
must put off " the old man with his deeds 
* * * be renewed in the spirit of our 
mind," and live out the "new man, which 
after God is created in righteousness and 
true holiness." The change experienced 
within is to produce a corresponding change 
without. "All bitterness and wrath, and 
anger, and clamor, and evil speaking," are 
to be "put away from" us, "with all mal- 
ice," and we are to be "kind one to another, 
tender hearted, forgiving one another, even 
as God, for Christ's sake hath forgiven" us. 
Even the "appearance of evil" is to be 
avoided, and we are to "live soberly, righte- 
ously, and godly, in this present world, looking 
for that blessed hope and the glorious ap- 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 125 

pearing of the great God, and our Saviour, 
Jesus Christ." 

The strictness of the New Testament, as a 
rule of practice, is too little understood, less 
appreciated, and still less conformed to. It 
is for this reason that so many bring a wound 
upon the cause of Christ, and a reproach 
upon themselves. In an unguarded hour, 
some whose lives have long been examplary, 
fall by the sin of licentiousness; others of 
rare and commendable virtues in many re- 
spects, spoil the whole by giving way to an 
impetuous temper ; while others still, of equal, 
or greater merits, in desirable qualities, both 
of mind and heart, mar the entire, and crip- 
ple their influence by the too free use of the 
tongue, or in making a god of this world and 
flaying alive before its altar, even their pro- 
fession of piety. Christian reader, you can 
not be too guarded on these and similar 
points. The Scriptures deal with them in a 
manner too explicit and too strict to be mis- 
understood or to be set at naught. Its in- 
junctions here are to be read, pondered and 
obeyed. Do not give others occasion to 



11* 



126 the pastor's gift; or. 

question- the moral purity of your thoughts, 
Do not allow frequent outbursts of temper to 
scar your Christian character : do not be a 
tattler; do not be guilty of any practice 
which can bring your high profession into 
disrepute. 

In governing ourselves, the two following 
rules will be of much importance : a. Keep 
far away from all scenes, places, or occasions 
of temptation. b. Suppress at once, and 
completely, the first rising emotions of a 
questionable character. If in accomplishing 
this we find it necessary to leave any given 
place or company, we should do so without 
delay. That was a wise man, who never 
spoke, when excited, till he had counted one 
hundred. 



UNYIELDING INTEGRITY. V 

Said a certain father, in speaking of his 
two sons, " John is the more honest man, but 
James is the better Christian." A strange 
idea, and yet as strange as it may seem, we 
fear it is quite too common. The idea is that 
we may be very good Christians, and yet not 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 127 



be distinguished for uprightness. It is one, 
however, for which we have no complacency. 
Honesty, indeed, is not piety, but true and 
consistent piety can not exist without honesty. 
The profession is a mere empty sound, a gold- 
en leaf, covering rottenness itself. Some tell 
us, and even those who ought to teach a wide- 
ly different doctrine, that if, in the present 
state of society, we adopt rules strictly in 
accordance with the Gospel, we can not live. 
Be it so then. Let us die ; die victims to 
integrity; die of utter starvation.- Better, 
by far, give back the spirit to God now, and 
without sin, than to retain it longer, only to 
corrupt it. But the assertion is both ground- 
less and boldly criminal, charging God with 
the want of both wisdom and justice. Cor- 
rupt as the world is, we may yet live here 
and live honestly, and he who thinks differ- 
ently, and does differently, braves the awful 
penalty of God's righteous law. 

In our dealings, then, the one with the 
other, nothing should be allowed or thought 
of, but the most straight-forward and un- 
yielding integrity. The Christian should be 
a man of his word. What he says should be 



128 the pastor's gift; or, 

relied on as unerring truth, unerring we 
mean, so far as human testimony can be. 
And even if he "sweareth to his own hurt," 
he must not change. He should make no 
promise without a reasonable prospect of be- 
ing able to fulfill it, and when a promise is 
made, no effort should be spared to make it 
good to the letter. If, however, unforeseen 
circumstances prevent his doing this, he should 
give the earliest information to those con- 
cerned, so that they may suffer from his fail- 
ure as little as possible, and his character 
stand before them above reproach. In all 
buying and selling, this perfect uprightness 
must be observed. Any misrepresentation, 
any over-reaching, any advantage taken of 
other men's weakness, want of knowledge, 
depression of circumstances, or any thing 
similar, is wrong. It is a violation of the 
eighth commandment. It is disregarding the 
great golden rule ; it is going beyond and 
defrauding. Woe to them that get rich by 
extortion ; their riches shall consume them 
as doth the canker ; " They that will be rich 
fall into temptation and a snare ; and into 
many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 129 

men in destruction and perdition. For the 
love of money is the root of all evil ; which 
while some coveted after, they have erred 
from the faith and pierced themselves through 
with many sorrows. But thou, 0 man of 
God, flee these things." 

What we have said above will embrace 
both buyer and seller. And at this point a 
question may be started which is of no little 
importance to the community, and to each 
individual in it. It is this : Whom shall the 
Christian patronize in his common business 
transactions ? We reply, unquestionably, 
the man of integrity. The reverse of this 
is but a narrow-minded, miserable, and miser- 
ly policy, wrong in itself, and destructive to 
the end sought. People may gain a little by 
it in some things, but are most sure to make a 
double and trible loss in others. No man 
can be supposed to do business without some 
profit, and if he will undersell or overpay 
in one instance, for the sake of your custom, 
he must make up this loss by overcharging 
or underpaying in others. And not only so, 
but if virtuous people will give their patron- 
age (and this too at a risk to themselves at 



130 the pastor's gift; or, 

the time) to the unprincipled, the conse- 
quence will be to drive all virtuous men from 
a given business, and leave the community, 
and themselves also, to take their chance 
with those only whose " tender mercies" are 
"cruelty." By this means society loses a 
good citizen, gains a bad one, and as the con- 
sequence, every one who has aught to do with 
him, is liable to suffer. Yes, bad citizens 
are made, and those who help make them, 
must assist in paying the cost. Let virtue 
patronize virtue. Let integrity encourage 
integrity, and all will be gainers. 

But the integrity of which we speak, should 
be found not only in our business transac- 
tions, but in all our social intercourse one 
with another. Some err here who would not 
take advantage in business. They carry two 
sides. They are one thing in one place, and 
another in another. Without just integrity 
upon this point, or influenced by the pervert- 
ed and perverting customs of society, by love 
of applause, or by anxiety to gain the good 
will of all, they bend, they swerve, they con- 
ceal. But every thing of this kind is wrong. 
"Not double tongued," is the divine injunc- 



OUTLINES OP CHRISTIAN DUTY. 



131 



tion. Let us have any thing to deal with, 
rather than the wily serpent, charming but 
to destroy. Deliver us also from that mis- 
taken policy, or that supposed kindness, 
which would do things without our knowing it, 
or which would leave us to go blindfold to 
ruin, rather than hurt our feelings by telling 
us the truth. The one course is wrong in it- 
self, and the other is any thing but fidelity to 
a common friendship. Neither should be 
found in the Christian. He who bears this 
high appellation, should ever speak as if as- 
sured that God and man saw his heart and 
knew the truth of what he said. His word 
should be like the "law of the Medes and Pers- 
ians, that alter eth not." In questions which in- 
volve no moral obliquity, he may yield to the 
gratification of others. But when he is called 
upon to assent to, or conceal moral w T rong, 
he should be as fixed as the hills and as firm 
as the mountains of rock. Such integrity 
may indeed diminish present popularity, or 
make enemies for the time, but, in the end, it 
will lay the foundation of a permanant reputa- 
tion, and secure the full confidence of all. 
And far more than this ; it is the only way by 



132 



THE PASTOR'S GIFT; OR, 



which we can secure the approbation of 
God. 

But, before dismissing this subject, allow 
me to notice integrity in yet another form. 
It is in its civil relations. The question is 
often asked, what part ought the Christian to 
take in politics. Some say little or none. 
Others would allow us to enter into party 
strife with so much zeal as to blight, and sear, 
and crisp our piety. Each of these courses 
is wrong. In other words, the Christian may 
interest himself too little or too much in civil 
affairs. In the first place, on becoming Chris- 
tians we do not cease to be citizens, and con- 
sequently do not yield our civil rights, or lose 
our civil obligations. And further ; our civil 
and religious interests are united, and hence 
our spiritual as well as temporal welfare, urge 
ns to a just anxiety and effort in relation to 
the laws and rulers of our country. Let it 
not be supposed, however, that we should en- 
gage in these subjects with so much zeal and 
interest as to lose sight of our piety. As to 
civil office, let the Christian neither anxiously 
seek, nor unnecessarily decline. And if he 
is elevated to one, let him fulfill its duties in 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 133 

the fear of God, and as it becomes his sacred 
profession. Let him carry along with him 
an integrity which will neither break nor 
bend. An intriguing politician and an 
humble Christian are never found under the 
same cloak. Tbey can not live on so intimate 
terms. The instant the one gains possession, 
the other must retire. 

But few only can hold office, while the many 
may vote. The elective franchise is the Amer- 
ican's birthright. It is a high privilege. It is 
a sacred obligation, and should ever be exer- 
cised wisely and in the fear of God. Let the 
Christian vote, but let it be for principles and 
not names. Let him vote for men of capacity 
and integrity, and not merely for those of a 
party. If he does the former, all will be safe ; 
if the latter, nothing can be depended upon. 
If honest and capable men are at the head of 
affairs, good or bad measures will at last 
stand or fall by their own real merits. If 
men of the opposite character hold the reins, 
every thing is in danger. If one who asks 
for your vote can not be trusted as a man or 
neighbor, be sure he can not be trusted in his 
civil pretensions. He may promise ever so 
12 



134 



the pastor's gift; or, 



fairly, but will always be ready to betray his 
constituents or sell his country for "a piece 
of bread." Cast your vote for such a man, 
and you betray your trust alike as a citizen 
and as a Christian. Blind adhesion to par- 
ty, without regard to the measures of the 
party, or the character of the men who lead 
it, is one of the growing evils of our day, and 
one of the greatest sources of danger to our 
country. Break away then from all party 
shackles, and vote for upright and intelligent 
men, and those alone. 



BENEVOLENCE. 

The religion of Christ is a religion of love. 
Love is its moving spring and the property, 
which above all others, gives to it its peculiar 
character. And this love in religion is to 
baptize its followers into its own spirit. 
While it requires us to put away " all bitter- 
ness, and wrath, and anger, and clamor, and 
evil speaking, * * * with all malice,' ' it com- 
mands us to "be kind to one another, tender- 
hearted, forgiving one another.' ' We are to 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 135 

put on "bowels of mercies,' ' and " kindness ; " 
to be " rich in good works/' and to " do good 
unto all men, as we have opportunity ; espe- 
cially to them who are of the household of 
faith." Our Saviour, while here, was the 
very personification of benevolence. His er- 
rand was one of mercy ; and not contented 
with doing good as opportunity offered, he 
"went about" seeking the opportunity. But 
the Christian is the professed disciple of this 
same Saviour. He is an avowed learner and 
follower of His. But if we are the disciples, 
learners, and followers of Christ, we should 
be like Him, feeling as He felt, and doing as 
He did. In this respect He has left 66 us an 
example that [we] should follow in his steps." 
Says the Apostle James, " Pure religion and 
undefiled before God and the Father, is this : 
to visit the fatherless and the widow in their 
afflictions, and to keep himself unspotted from 
the world." 

Among the first feelings of the recently re- 
newed, benevolence holds a most conspicuous 
place. At such a time it pours out its favors 
in a copious measure. It can stoop to that 
which is near. It can fly to that which is 



136 the pastor's gift; OR, 

afar. It is a grace which is fondly cherished 
in the heart, and beautifully adorns the out- 
ward life. So should it always be. "But 
whoso hath this world's goods and seeth his 
brother have need, and shutteth up his bow- 
els of compassion from him, how dwelleth the 
love of God in him?" The language of in- 
spiration is "how?" and from every side the 
echo comes back "how?" Such a man is 
so unlike God, he possesses a spirit so dis- 
similar to that of Christ, how is it possible 
for him to have had any acquaintance with 
the Saviour or to have known any thing of 
the religion which he came to establish? A 
selfish Christian is as a tigerish lamb, a thing 
that outrages nature. The very word Chris- 
tian carries with it the idea of love and good 
will ; and the simple fact that a man pro- 
fesses to be a Christian, ought to assure us 
that he is a man of soul, of sympathy, and 
of kindness, a kindness which is to be " not 
in word" and "in tongue," but "in deed and 
in truth." There is to be the true feeling of 
love in the heart, and this is to bring forth 
outwardly its natural fruit. 

This is to be done as we have opportunity 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 137 

or ability. " If there is first a willing nrind, 
it is accepted according to that a man hath, 
and not according to that he hath not." But 
let no one talk of "the widow's two mites " 
and give penuriously, when his means are 
abundant. Such conduct is mockery. It sa- 
vors too much of the guilt of Ananias and 
Sapphira. A mind truly willing will make us 
benevolent in word and deed. The love in 
the heart will be like fire in the furnace, 
warming all who approach it, and sending out 
its heat afar. And how often will simply a 
kind look cheer a grieved spirit, — a kind 
word give new beatings to the heart w T hose 
throbbings had almost ceased — or the kind 
deed break the long spell of gloom and give 
new hope, life, and pow r er, to those who are 
already on the brink of despair. To the 
truly afflicted, and especially so to the friend- 
less, timely kindness has power to charm into 
newness of life. The deed may cost but little, 
but it is blessed in a fourfold degree. It im- 
parts new life and hope to the receiver. It 
fills the giver with the most pleasing emotions, 
and causes to come upon him, " the blessing 
of Him who was ready to perish. " All who 
12* 



138 



the pastor's gift; or, 



approach Him should be made to feel His 
kindness of heart, and this kindness should 
follow him in its influence wherever he goes ; 
and he should go wherever there is a tear tG 
wipe away, an afflicted spirit to soothe, or a 
want to relieve. In this way he will glorify 
God by bringing forth "much fruit." 

But says one, if your principles are carried 
out, they would soon exhaust oar resources 
and reduce ourselves to poverty. In reply 
we say, that, though we should give liberally, 
we are not to give without discretion. Our 
calls for benevolence are indeed numerous, 
and sometimes, we regret to say, not for the 
most worthy objects. If we give, therefore, 
over bountifully at every solicitation, we may 
not only exhaust our present means, but cut 
off our future power to do. But this is sel- 
dom, if ever, required. We are to have 
"first, a willing mind," and then look at our 
ability and do according to that ability, and 
the real merits of the object for which solici- 
tation is made. Immediate and pressing 
wants are to be relieved, as far as possible, 
at all times, but we may never feel ourselves 
called upon to give, where there is neither the 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 139 

present, nor the future prospect of good. And 
except in great emergencies, we should never 
give to that degree, which will impair our fu- 
ture resources. The correct principle is to 
feel that neither ourselves nor aught which we 
possess is our own ; but that we and it are 
God's, and that whatever we do, is to be 
done to His glory. Governed by this principle, 
whenever we have a call for the exercise of be- 
nevolence, our only question should be, what 
will God " have me to do ? " And as we decide, 
so let us act. Proceeding on this principle, we 
may ever be assured that we are proceeding 
safely to ourselves and acceptably to God. 

And here let me urge the importance of re- 
ducing our benevolence to system. We have 
many calls which may come up unexpectedly 
and which must be decided and acted upon 
at the time. Knowing this, it might be well 
for us to make some provisions for such calls 
in anticipation. But the wants of the great 
benevolent movements of the age are known 
beforehand ; every Christian should feel him- 
self bound to aid them, and that he may do 
this the more readily and fully, he should 
anticipate their claims and prepare to meet 



140 



THE PASTOR/ S GIFT; OR ; 



them as he does other claims. This may be 
done by giving a certain proportion of his in- 
come, by laying by him so much per week, 
by appropriating the avails of so much labor, 
or the proceeds of so much land. By such 
means he can do far beyond what he might 
otherwise suppose it possible, and have oc- 
casion only to rejoice in the privilege. 

We have spoken of a free, cheerful, and ac- 
tive benevolence. Such we believe to be the 
duty of every Christian, independent of any 
consideration of reward to himself. But w T e are 
not without encouragement here. To do good is 
to be happy. To bless is to be blessed. "And 
whosoever shall give unto one of these little 
ones, a cup of cold water only, in the name 
of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall 
in no wise lose his re ward.' ' " Give, and it 
shall be given unto you, good measure, pressed 
down and shaken together, and running over, 
shall men give into your bosoms." "He 
which soweth sparingly, shall reap also spar- 
ingly, and he which soweth bountifully, shall 
reap also bountifully." "He that hath pity 
upon the poor, lendeth also to the Lord, and 
that which he hath given, will He pay him 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 141 

again." " Thou shalt be recompensed in the 
resurrection of the just." In the last day 
the Judge will say, "For I was an hungered, 
and ye gave me meat. * * * I was an 
hungered, and ye gave me no meat." 

Note. — The propriety and obligation of 
Christians to unite with benevolent associa- 
tions, is sometimes a subject of inquiry. 
Those who take ground against such an ar- 
rangement, we consider to be wrong. Each 
church is supposed to be free from all open 
immorality, and of itself should throw its 
influence against every moral evil. Each 
church, also, is supposed to be a missionary 
body, one great object of its formation being 
the promotion of the cause of Christ. Hence 
every church, as a church, ought to be active 
in the missionary and kindred causes. 

But we are men as well as Christians, 
members of society as well as of the churches 
of God, and hence, often, if we act as men 
and as citizens, our influence is greater than 
it would be, if we acted as Christians, or 
church-members. And besides, there are of- 
ten those who are not members of the church, 



142 the pastor's gift; or, 

who would be happy to unite with those who 
are, in promoting the various causes of phi- 
lanthropy and benevolence. And why should 
they not do this, or why not Christians unite 
with them for this purpose ? We know of no 
sufficient reason. We must therefore feel 
that it is the duty of every Christian to act, 
not only in his church capacity, in promoting 
the reformation of men, and the advance- 
ment of religion, but also to unite with all 
those benevolent institutions, whose aim and 
measures he approves, and which he can pro- 
mote by his influence and resources. 



OBSERVANCE OF THE SABBATH. 

It may surprise some that the duty here 
indicated, should be introduced at this point, 
and be classed as belonging to the cluster of 
personal virtues. But while the importance 
of the subject peremptorily forbids its being 
overlooked, its nature, it seems to us, very 
obviously brings it within the scope of the 
current chapter. Indeed, the proper observ- 
ance of the Sabbath, at the present time, is 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 143 

of so rare occurrence, that we need hesitate 
but little in considering it a highly important 
personal excellence. 

As a divine institution the appointment of 
the Sabbath is coeval with the creation of 
man. It " was made for man, and not man 
for the Sabbath.' ? It is adapted to our wants 
as a day of rest and religious worship, and 
when properly observed, proves most salutary 
and happy in its influence. If neglected or 
abused, one of our richest blessings will be 
turned into a most direful curse. 

The design of the Sabbath may be learned 
from the following passages : " And on the 
seventh day God ended his work which he 
had made ; and he rested on the seventh day 
from all His works which He had made. And 
God blessed the seventh day ; and sanctified 
it; because in it he rested from all his w T orks ? 
which God created and made — Remem- 
ber the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Six 
days thou shalt labor and do all thy work ; 
but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the 
Lord thy God ; in it thou shalt not do any 
work ; thou, nor thy son, nor thy daugh- 
ter, nor thy man-servant, nor thy maid-serv- 



144 the pastor's gift; or, 



ant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is 
within thy gates. For in six days the Lord 
made heaven and earth, the sea and all that 
in them is, and rested the seventh day; 
wherefore the Lord blessed the seventh day 
and hallowed it." 

In regard to these passages, observe three 
things. First, that the Sabbath was institu- 
ted at the creation of the world, and was 
given to man, as man, and hence was to be 
of universal and perpetual obligation. Sec- 
ondly, the day was consecrated as a day of 
rest and worship, and is to be kept holy ; 
and, thirdly, it is to be a day in which we are 
to cease entirely from labor. 

Here then we have a day consecrated to 
rest and religious worship. Sow shall it be 
observed? We reply, as a day of serious 
reading, meditation, and of private and pub- 
lic religious exercises. It is designed to give 
us the needful relaxation from our ordinary 
toil, to put us in remembrance of God and 
of our obligations to Him, and to give an 
opportunity of preparing for that future and 
eternal day of rest, held in reserve for the 
righteous. Whatever, therefore, will natu- 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 145 

rally serve to remind ourselves or others of 
God, of duty, and of heaven, and will urge 
us to a performance of the one, or a prepara- 
tion for the other, is to be considered as al- 
lowable and important. Among these we 
may name serious reading, the study of the 
Bible, private meditation and prayer, public 
and social worship, and Sabbath school du- 
ties. These are some of the things which 
Scripture, reason and conscience teach us we 
ought to do. 

But what are some of those which we ought 
not to do ? We reply, that we ought not to 
spend the day in sleep. This is sinning 
against God and wronging our own souls. 
But the language which we have quoted is, 
" Thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy 
son, nor thy daughter, nor thy man-servant, 
nor thy maid-servant, nor thy cattle.' ' There 
can be no question but this forbids our ordi- 
nary attention to the business of life. No 
one, therefore, who has any regard to the re- 
quirements of the Sabbath, will think of go- 
ing into his field, shop, or store, and there 
doing as he does on other days. But while 
this open and glaring wrong is avoided, 
13 



146 the pastor's gift; or ; 

many, and often too, professors of religion, 
do that which is as really a violation of the 
Sabbath. I refer to the needless frequent 
labor in the domestic line, the performance 
of such small work as commonly passes un- 
der the name of chores; as the loading of 
teams or preparing for it, — posting books — 
looking after fields or flocks — making pre- 
parations for Monday — hiring out horses 
— traveling — going on a visit on Saturday, 
and after spoiling the day for yourself and 
others, returning home, some five, ten, fif- 
teen or twenty miles on Sabbath evening — 
making calls, or unnecessarily visiting the 
sick. What are these things done for on the 
Sabbath ? What ? In one case to pamper 
the appetite, and that too often so far as to 
unfit one for the appropriate duties of the 
day, — in another, it is to make a direct gain, 
and in each of the others it is to save time 
for the week. But the language is, " thou 
shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor 
thy daughter, nor thy man-servant, nor thy 
maid-servant." But if you keep your son or 
daughter, or servant, cooking and waiting 
from early morn, till noon or night, and thus 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 147 

detain the one or the other from the house 
of God, and withhold all opportunity for 
rest, or private or public religious improve- 
ment, are you not violating the Sabbath? 
But the language also says, " nor thy cattle." 
But if you hire out your horse, or drive him 
yourself on a journey, are you not with- 
holding from him that right of repose which 
the great Creator has conferred? If you 
spend your Sabbaths in visiting, can you 
be said to " remember the day to keep it 
holy? " But, say you, can we not visit the 
sick, or the afflicted ? Yes, we reply, if your 
presence is needed to alleviate suffering, or 
to sweeten the bitterness of sorrow. Go any 
where on the Sabbath, where relief can be 
afforded, if it be only to a brute. This is one 
thing. It is a deed of charity. But to use 
the ill health of a friend as an excuse for 
making an ordinary visit ; to call upon a sick 
neighbor, because too worldly minded to do 
it on any other day, to crowd a sick room to 
the manifest injury of the patient, or to dis- 
turb those hours which the sick ought, and 
perhaps would be glad to pass in calm and 
serious meditation and prayer, is another and 



148 the pastor's gift; or, 

a very different thing. It is an act of un- 
kindness. It is a sin against God and man. 

In a word, we may do on the Sabbath 
whatever our own or others' temporal good 
absolutely requires, and whatever will tend 
to prepare ourselves or others for heaven. 
All beyond this is infringing on holy time, 
and should be avoided. 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 149 



CHAPTER V. 

DUTIES TO CHURCH MEMBERS. 



THE RECEPTION OF NEW MEMBERS. 

In the earlier years of Christianity, there 
seems to have been but little system in regard 
to preaching and the admission of new mem- 
bers. Whoever chose, proclaimed the Gos- 
pel, and whoever was instrumental in making 
a convert, took the responsibility of intro- 
ducing him into the church. 

This practice may have been safe at first, 
while none could have a motive to preach, 
except the good, and none could be presumed 
to profess Christianity except the sincere. 
But when converts were multiplied, and the 
borders of the church widely extended, great- 
er caution became necessary. Hence we 
soon find an established order of preachers, 
and a regular system in the reception of new 
13* 



150 the pastor's gift; or, 

members. Upon this latter point equal cau- 
tion is necessary at the present time. The 
adding to the church of suitable members, 
should ever be an occassion of rejoicing. 
Beyond the pleasing evidence it affords that 
souls are saved, it increases the numbers and 
the strength of the church. The reception 
of unsuitable members, however, will subse- 
quently prove to be a just ground of regret. 
The injury that will follow will be deep and 
lasting, pertaining not only to this life, but 
also to that which is to come. 

But who are to decide on the reception of 
new members ? We reply, the church itself. 
A church is an independent body, not prop- 
erly formed at first by some foreign agency, 
but by itself — from the individual, free, and 
voluntary choice of its members. Its organ- 
zation — not its recognition — is first and 
essentially its own act. But if the first 
members voluntarily and mutually unite and 
form a church, and this for their own benefit, 
and for the accomplishment of an object in 
which they have a mutual interest and ob- 
ligation, it must follow that it is their 
right, and theirs alone, to say who shall 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 151 

subsequently be admitted to share with them 
their privileges and obligations. The judg- 
ment of a minister, and especially of a pas- 
tor, is always desirable. But the minister 
or the pastor has no authority to add to 
the church on his own responsibility, or un- 
duly urge additions in opposition to the judg- 
ment or wishes of the church. He has his 
privilege and choice, the same as other mem- 
bers. He has, however, no exclusive rights. 
His stay with a people is often short, and 
consequently he has little to do with the new 
members when once received. But with the 
church it is different. This body is perma- 
nent, and has to take these new members to 
its bosom and make them parts of itself. If 
they prove genuine, it is well. If otherwise, 
it has the burden and grief of bearing with 
them, or the labor and pain of cutting them 
off. Thus a church, in order to be a free and 
independent body, and to be able to secure 
to its first members their undoubted rights, 
must have in itself exclusive power of receiv- 
ing or rejecting members, as it may conceive 
it to be to its own advantage or detriment. 
But what qualifications should a candidate 



152 



THE PASTOR'S GIFT; OR, 



possess, in order to be received into a church ? 
We reply, clear evidence of piety and cor- 
rect sentiments. The church is exclusively 
designed for sincere believers or renewed per- 
sons, and to receive those which are not such, 
would be, not only to violate the law of Christ, 
but doing those who are admitted, a great, 
and perhaps an irreparable injury. Its ten- 
dency would be to foster in them self-righte- 
ousness, and to lull them into a false, if not 
fatal security. And not only so, but such 
members can never be of use to a church. 
They will be only as thorns in its bosom, or 
as dead weights on its hands. " Salt is 
good," but if it has no "saltness," of what 
use is it ? The more of it there is, the worse 
off is the possessor. 

But here it may be asked, how are we to 
decide on the piety of the candidate ? We 
answer, by the satisfactory account which he 
can give of his regeneration, and by "the 
fruit," which he brings forth "meet for re- 
pentance." The two go together, and we 
can not be fully satisfied as to the former 
without opportunity to witness the latter. A 
man may tell an experience like that of Paul, 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 153 

but if his life does not correspond, he is only 
as "a sounding brass or tinkling cymbal." 

But before receiving new members, correct 
views of doctrine and practice, as well as 
evidence of piety, are requisite. This point 
is quite too often and too much overlooked. 
It is not to be supposed that those recently 
converted can be, usually, mature theologians, 
nor is this necessary. People are to " believe," 
to be " baptized," and then to be further 
taught "all things •whatsoever" Christ has 
commanded. But few, however, propose to 
make a profession of religion, who have not 
already adopted some views. So far as these 
extend, they should be esteemed correct. 
Without this a union so intimate would be 
unwise alike for both parties. To construct 
a church at first without some prescribed 
platform on which all its members can stand 
in common, would be like forming a vacuum 
in nature, into which every thing around, 
good, bad, or indifferent, would have a ten- 
dency to rush. The very idea of constituting 
a Christian church, carries with it the idea of 
its members being united in feeling, senti- 
ment, and interest. This union is the cement 



154 the pastor's gift; or, 

that at first makes them one, and subsequently 
holds them together. But of what use would 
be prescribed principles, at the outset, if no 
subsequent regard is paid to them ? If you 
change, dispense with, or bend one article of 
your creed to accommodate one individual, 
you may for a similar reason, do the same to 
the second, the third, and so continue, till 
there is nothing of your original platform 
left. Or if you receive into your church those 
having sentiments essentially different from 
your own, you are preparing the way for fu- 
ture discord, if not for ultimate ruin. Such 
a course may seem to work well for a time, 
but sooner or later, its error will be seen and 
most sadly felt. This division in sentiment 
will lead to a division in church measures, in 
the choice of a minister, and in the character 
of the preaching desired ; and the ultimate 
consequence of all will be, that nothing can be 
done in harmony. The discordant elements 
will tend to a state of perfect fermentation, 
if not to a violent and dangerous explosion. 
So common sense would lead us to anticipate, 
and so all experience proves. Any new at- 
tempt, therefore, to unite concordant and dis- 



OUTLINES OE CHRISTIAN DUTY. 155 

cordant elements in one church, is but to en- 
act over again an old folly, tried in vain from 
the earliest ages of Christianity to the pres- 
ent time. It is worse than useless to try it 
again. We are always glad to see peace, 
harmony, and love prevail ; but that this may 
be so, let us refrain from an attempt to unite 
materials which have in themselves no com- 
mon principle or bond of union. 

But in receiving additions to a church, 
there is another thing which sometimes re- 
quires attention. It is harmony of feeling 
between those about to be received and those 
who are already members. Difficulties in 
churches arise with sufficient frequency, with- 
out inviting their presence. If the candi- 
date himself is at variance with any present 
member, or if a present member has a diffi- 
culty with a proposed new one, this should be 
first settled. It can be done before reception 
better than at any subsequent time, and if it 
can not be done then, it would be most unwise 
to receive the member in question* If the 
candidate is at fault let him confess it, and 
make proper reparation, or if he is unwilling 
to do this, he is unfit to be received. If a 



156 the pastor's gift; or, 



present member is in the wrong, or if he ob- 
jects after all reasonable satisfaction has been 
offered, he is a proper subject of discipline, 
and his conduct requires the notice and the 
action of the church. 

The propriety of receiving members imme- 
diately after conversion,is sometimes discussed. 
To our minds this question is one of expedi- 
ency. Reasonable forethought would seem 
to be against the practice, and so we think 
is observation. We would not indeed forbid 
the baptism and reception of new members, 
as soon as we gain a full evidence of piety. 
Our advice, however, would be to give the 
young convert time for a second thought. It 
can do him no harm, and it may do him much 
good. If his exercises have been spurious, 
delay will afford himself and others sufficient 
opportunity to detect the mistake. If they 
have been genuine, a proper reviewing of 
them will only confirm his hopes and enable 
him to act more understandingly, and for the 
future to become the more decided and stable 
Christian. 

But it may be objected that if persons do 
not unite with the church at first, they will 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 157 

become indifferent and not unite at all. So 
be it, then. If their piety is not sufficiently 
deep seated and active to enable them to live 
a few weeks out of the church, they are not 
suitable persons to be received into it. Pre- 
vious to their reception they can enjoy all 
the privileges of actual members, except that 
of the Lord's Supper, and if their piety is to 
pass away like the morning cloud, the un- 
happy influence of this, while standing by 
themselves, would be less than while standing 
with the church. True we may delay the 
duty too long, and when this is done, it will 
be injurious. For such a delay we do not 
ask. We ask only for one which will enable 
the candidate to consider fully, see clearly, 
and act understandingly. 



MUTUAL LOVE, 

"Love is the fulfilling of the law." This 
is the "new commandment," given to the 
disciples by Christ, new, not in itself, but 
in its practice among men. It is the sure 
test of our discipleship ; " for we know that 
14 



158 the pastor's gift; or, 

we have past from death unto life, be- 
cause we love the brethren." To find one 
who is a recent subject of renewing grace, 
and yet is without love to Christians, would 
be to find something which never exist- 
ed. " He that loveth not his brother, 
abideth in death." Love is the natural and 
the necessary feeling of the young Christian, 
and without it, no one can give evidence of 
piety. It is in the full exercise of this affec- 
tion that each member is supposed to offer 
himself to, anjl is received by the church. 

We need not then especially urge the pos- 
session of strong love at first. It is some- 
thing which every Christian is taught of God. 
It is something which we are as sure to have, 
as it is sure that we are Christians, and are 
in any way fit subjects for church member- 
ship. But possessing this love at first, we are 
to be doubly cautious that we cherish it unto 
the end. This caution might be unnecessary, 
perhaps, were we already in a world of per- 
fection. Our love would then, not only ger- 
minate spontaneously, but grow without in- 
terruption. But there is no perfection here. 
We are ever liable to have some root of bit- 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 159 

terness spring up in our own hearts, or in the 
hearts of others, and thus tend to injury. 
Trifling or more extended causes of vexation 
are constantly occurring in connection with 
ourselves or others, and to guard against their 
blighting and withering influence will require 
our constant and unwearied care. To yield 
here would be like losing our badge of char- 
acter — like surrendering the zeal of our dis- 
cipleship. " Herein is love, — not that we 
loved God, but that He loved us and sent 
His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 
Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to 
love one another." Christians are brethren, 
not so in the flesh, but in their renewed na- 
tures — purchased by the same blood — sanc- 
tified by the same spirit — adopted into the 
same great family of God, and made heirs to- 
gether of the same glorious hopes. They 
must not, therefore, lose their love for each 
other. And that such may not be the pain- 
ful fact, they must cultivate each other's re- 
ligious acquaintance, often converse of the 
things of the kingdom, and pray one for an- 
other. It is the parent's unwearied care for 
the child, that makes the child so increasingly 



160 the pastor's gift; or, 

dear. And so an interest in each other's re- 
ligious welfare, increases our attachment to 
each other. And often, if Christians knew 
each other better, they would love each other 
more. It would give a new insight into each 
other's characters, make known new corres- 
pondence of trials and hopes, and make them 
feel that they are indeed brethren, and bound 
alike to the same glorious home. And prayer 
too has a charm here. We can not hear 
others lifting up the earnest petition in our 
behalf, nor can we do the same in theirs, with- 
out its increasing our love. Sympathy also, 
has a potent power. We love those who can 
feel for us when necessary ; and when we al- 
low our sympathies to go out and entwine 
themselves around the afflicted or tried, we 
can hardly fail to give them a warm place 
in our affections. Let Christians then, and es- 
pecially fellow church members, see that their 
love abounds and continues, and that this 
love is not "in word" or " in tongue" alone, 
but "in deed and in truth." 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 161 



MUTUAL FORBEARANCE. 

This duty is kindred to that of mutual love. 
Indeed it arises from it as necessary to its 
continuance, as the branches and leaves of a 
tree are necessary to the continued life and 
growth of the root. Amid the jarring ele- 
ments of this world, it starts up as a pacifi- 
cator among brethren. It shines out as a 
bright star of Christian virtue, and without 
it there can be neither peace, harmony, nor 
love. 44 Brethren, if a man be overtaken in 
a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such 
an one in the spirit of meekness, considering 
thyself lest thou also be tempted. " "Bear 
ye one another's burdens, and so fulfill the 
law of Christ." Know that you have imper- 
fections of your own, and expect to find the 
same in others ; and as you often need the 
patience and forgiveness of your brethren, 
as it relates to your own conduct, so cheer- 
fully concede the same to them. 

In the first place, we should be sloiv to take 
offense. 44 Be swift to hear, slow to speak, 
14* 



162 the pastor's gift; OR ; 

slow to wrath ; for the wrath of man work- 
eth not the righteousness of God." Anger 
may arise in the bosom of the wise, but it can 
rest only in that of fools. Small things must 
not be allowed to disturb our peace or lessen 
our attachment. This would betray a little- 
ness of mind and an irritability of temper, 
wholly unworthy of the Christian. Admit 
that our brethren do sometimes err ; do we 
not often do the same ? Do we not ourselves 
sometimes mistake, even when our intentions 
are the purest ? But if this is the case with 
ourselves, why may it not be the same with 
others ? If others err, let us hope as long as 
hope can be cherished, that it is from weak- 
ness, the want of information, or the pressure 
of untoward circumstances. Let us exercise 
that charity which covers a multitude of in- 
firmities. 

But while slow to receive, we should be 
equally cautious against giving offense. 
The feelings of our brethren should ever be 
held as sacred. They are most keenly alive 
to any thing which can wound or grieve, and 
therefore we should be most anxious to say 
nothing and do nothing which can justly dis- 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 163 



turb their feelings, or chill their affections. It 
is true that Christians are often quite too sen- 
sitive, foolishly, and even wickedly so. They 
make "a great matter" of a very " little 
fire." They may he grieved and tried when 
they have no just occasion for it. But what 
then ? Because it is so, we should be the 
more anxious to "give none offense, neither 
to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the 
church of Gcod" "Let no man seek his 
own, but every man another's wealth," " We 
then that are strong ought to bear the infirm- 
ities of the weak, and not to please ourselves. 
Let every one of us please his neighbor to his 
good, to edification." If duty to our breth- 
ren compel us to reprove them, let this be 
done in love. And if we are under the pos- 
sitive necessity of cutting off a neighbor's 
"right hand," or plucking out his "right 
eye," the sharper the instrument used, the 
less painful the operation, and the more 
readily will the wound heal. 

But this mutual forbearance will require 
mutual concession also. An iron will is not 
a desirable instrument to wield in the church 
on all occasions. There may be times in 



164 the pastor's gift; or, 

•which it is called for. But this is seldom the 
fact, while cases are constantly occuring in 
which a mutual concession will save worlds of 
subsequent difficulty. In matters of abso- 
lute obligation we should yield nothing. In 
those of mere ways and forms we should be 
ready to yield all rather than contend or 
cause trouble. We have no more right to our 
preference than others have to theirs. You 
may say it is a matter of conscience with 
you. But others have a conscience as well 
as yourself, and make not that a case of 
moral scruple which is only one of feeling or 
will. The conscience of some persons is pe- 
culiar. It is like a dead mass of lead hurled 
from the heaviest ordnance. It wants an 
explosion to start it, and when once in mo- 
tion, whether right or wrong, its course is 
straight onward, driving through or cutting 
down* all before it. Such a conscience was 
never cast in the Christian mold. It has 
never been tempered by Christian love, and 
the Christian should never allow himself . to 
be its owner. " Charity suffereth long and 
is kind ; charity envieth not ; charity vaunt- 
eth not itself; is not puffed up, doth not be- 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 165 



have itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is 
not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, rejoic- 
eth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the 
truth ; beareth all things, believeth all things, 
hopeth all things, endureth all things.' ' 



MUTUAL WATCH-CARE. 

This too is but one of the fruits of pure 
Christian love, and the apostle beautifully 
unfolds the duty in one of his most inimita- 
ble illustrations. Hear him: "For as the 
body is one and has many members, and all 
the members of that one body, being many, 
are one body, so also is Christ. For by one 
spirit, are we all baptized into one body; 
whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we 
be bond or free, and have been all made to 
drink into one spirit. * * * That there 
should be no schism in the body, but that 
the members should have the same care the 
one for another. And whether one member 
suffers, all the members suffer with it ; or 
one member be honored, all the members re- 
joice with it." As the natural body is one, 



166 ' THE PASTORS gift; or, 

and each member has an interest in the pre- 
servation and beauty of all the others, so in 
a church. Being alike members of the same 
body, each member is to have an affectionate 
care over the others ; knowing that as a 
Christian and as a church member, he is af- 
fected by whatever affects his brethren. On 
this principal we are mutually to watch over 
each other — speak often "one to another — 
exhort one another daily, while it is called 
to-day — edify one another — confess your 
faults one to another, and pray one for an- 
other — teaching and admonishing one an- 
other — And, brethren, if any of you do err 
from the truth, and one convert him, let him 
know that he which converteth a sinner from 
the error of his way, shall save a soul from 
death, and shall hide a multitude of sins." 

This mutual care is especially needful for 
those young in experience and knowledge. 
As the child is unconscious of the dangers 
which surround his future pathway, so it is 
with the youthful Christian. He is most per- 
fectly unconscious of the temptations which 
are before him. He does not dream of the 
arts by which he is to be assailed, or of the 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 167 

varied influences which are to combine to 
overcome his fidelity, and gradually draw 
him aside. Hence arises the duty of the 
older members exercising over him a pater- 
nal solicitude. And this equally shows the 
importance of the younger members seeking 
and kindly receiving such aid as the older 
and more experienced can give. 

But while this care is so important for the 
young and inexperienced, it is scarcely less so 
for the older, and those more advanced. In- 
deed, while here, no man rises above its ne- 
cessity or advantages, unless he rises above 
the possibility of erring. 

This care is a duty which we owe to others. 
It is a privilege also to receive it in return. 
How precious is the interest, sympathy, and 
encouragement of our brethren. And sup- 
pose that we err ; one of the greatest favors 
which we can receive is kind and earnest ad- 
monition. " Faithful are the wounds of a 
friend, but the kisses of an enemy are deceit- 
ful. — Let the righteous smite me; it shall 
be a kindness ; and let him reprove me, it 
shall be an excellent oil which shall not hurt 
my head " — no, nor heart either. We ought 



168 the pastor's gift; or, 

to be thankful that we have eyes of our own, 
and feet also, so that we can see and walk 
for ourselves. And yet it is a great favor to 
be, sometimes, enabled to avail ourselves of 
the assistance of the eyes and feet of others. 
We are seldom the best judges of our own 
character or conduct. We may be naturally, 
and perhaps unconsciously, too weak upon 
some points and too forward upon others. 
We may imperceptibly fall into some unde- 
sirable habit ; we may omit a first duty with- 
out once reflecting to what other neglect, or 
what evil it may lead us ; or we may fall in 
the way of some temptation, which, before 
we are aware, like the insidious serpent, has 
crept over us and made us fast in its coils. 
Our blemishes, however, our errors, or our 
dangers, may easily be perceived by our breth- 
ren, and if faithful to their covenant obliga- 
tions, one kind word may show us our defect, 
our wrong or our danger, and thereby enable 
us to rectify the one, avoid the second, or 
escape the third. Yes, more; it may save 
the cause of Christ a deep wound, and our- 
selves days of darkness and tears of repent- 
ance. A single word may open our eyes, 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 169 



awake our thoughts, dispel the gathering 
shade, break the spell of temptation, or give 
new cheerfulness and courage to our fainting 
spirits. It may, moreover, recover us from 
our danger after we are far out of the way. 
There is a power and a charm in the early 
and affectionate reproof, and often, should 
one word be kindly spoken at first, it might 
save the individual and the cause of Christ 
untold subsequent difficulty. 

Let church members, then, love as breth- 
ren ; and prompted by love, let them have a 
mutual care the one over the other. Let no 
one act the part of the public censor, and 
make it his business to find fault with, and 
admonish every one besides himself. Noth- 
ing is more undesirable or unamiable. But 
while we carefully avoid every thing of this 
kind, let us act the part of true and faithful 
friends, and thereby assist, if possible, and 
strengthen each other. 



PROTECTION OF CHARACTER. 

There are but few social practices, more to 
15 



170 the pastor's gift; oe, 

be reprobated, than evil speaking. It makes 
one place hostile to another, disturbs the har- 
mony of neighborhoods, creates difficulties in 
churches, breaks the peace of families, and 
often becomes the severing wedge between 
old and long-tried friends. The tattler, the 
evil speaker, and the busy-body in other 
men's matters are the most hateful characters 
in the community. Their business is to do 
evil. Going from place to place, reporting 
every little mishap, distorting facts, and mis- 
representing words ; throwing out dark in- 
sinuations and starting false reports, they 
make themselves more like the evil one than 
any other character; for he receives his 
name from being a false accuser. And yet 
but few, even of professing Christians, are so 
careful here as they ought to be. They meet 
in the social circle, or by the way-side, and 
the faults of their brethren are the subjects 
of their conversation ; new wings are given 
to some unfavorable report, or some new 
shade of error is flung to the passing breeze. 
Now all this, and every thing like it, is wrong, 
utterly and totally wrong, and can hardly 
be too severely censured. Says the apostle ? 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 



171 



"Speak not evil one of another." And 
again, "Put them in mind * * * to 
speak evil of no man." Observe how full is 
the instruction. " Speak not eYil one of an- 
other." Do not talk to the injury of your 
brethren ; no, — nor of any member of the hu- 
man family. The tongue should be kept 
with " bit and bridle," and especially so when 
"the wicked are before us." Character is 
most sacred. Every man, except the most 
abandoned (and even they are seldom indif- 
ferent), prizes his reputation above all else. 
This is especially true with the conscientious 
Christian. For the sake of his own useful- 
ness, for the sake of his religion, he would 
be above suspicion. How wrong then, and 
how cruel it is for a brother church member 
to trifle with his character. Such conduct is 
inconsistent with the Christian profession. 
It is a violation of the highest and most sa- 
cred covenant obligations. When we enter 
the church, we go there with the expectation 
of finding friends. We are received by those 
who pledge themselves to be to us as breth- 
ren, faithful and true. We fondly anticipate 
that the church will prove as the bosom of 



172 the pastor's gift; or, 

our own mother, a place which is sacred and 
in which we are safe. So it is, and so it ever 
should be. And most thoughtless and most 
wicked must he be, who pillowing his head 
with us on the bosom of the church, can, at 
the same time, make a deadly thrust at our 
reputation. This is wounding one in the 
house of his friends. It is fratricide. It is 
as if a brother's hand should crimson our 
mother's bosom with our own blood. 

You say that the member spoken against 
has done wrong. Admit it; but will this 
slight, and perhaps inadvertant wrong of his ? 
justify you, a professed brother, in ruining 
his character and blighting his usefulness ? 
Who is there against whom you can not bring 
something which is not, or which does not 
appear to be, quite exact ? And if you are 
going to abandon a brother, because of one 
minor fault, who will you have left ? Or if 
you apply this all-sweeping rule to yourself, 
how long will you be able to hold up your 
head? Charactershould be judged of, not by 
indivdual incidents or false steps, but by gen- 
eral conduct. When others are vexed with 
our imperfections or errors, we would have 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 173 

them exercise forbearance and charity. Let 
us do the same in return. 

Upon this point now before us, let every 
one adopt and most rigidly adhere to the 
following rules : 

a. Never in the least misrepresent the 
words or the conduct of a fellow church 
member. 

S. Never circulate, in regard to one, an 
unfavorable report till you know the report 
to be true, nor even then, unless it be requir- 
ed by the cause of religion and righteous- 
ness. 

c. Never speak of the faults of a church 
member, unless it be required by justice to 
the cause of religion, to yourself, or to some 
third person. 

d. Never throw out against any one dark 
and significant insinuations. This is slander 
of the most injurious, if not the most mali- 
cious character, and he who would be guilty 
of it, is unworthy of the companionship of 
man, and much less of the name — Christian. 

In the above rules we have used the ex- 
pression, unless, $c. In connection with this 
qualification, there need be one word of cau- 
15* 



174 



the pastor's gift; or, 



tion. It is that we not only have a reason, 
but an adequate reason for speaking of the 
faults of others. And again, if circumstances 
require us to speak of the faults of others, 
we should also speak of their virtues. And 
further still ; those rules which we have men- 
tioned for the government of our language 
in regard to our brother church members, 
should also govern us in regard to all. Let 
these rules be but once adopted and carried 
out by every Christian, and a very large por- 
tion of church difficulties would cease, and 
the character of many a church member re- 
ceive a new luster. " If any man offend not 
in word, the same is a perfect man, and able 
also to bridle the whole body." 



TEMPORAL ASSISTANCE. 

Says the apostle, "As we have therefore 
opportunity, let us do good unto all men; 
especially to them who are of the household 
of faith." Here we have a broad and com- 
prehensive rule. It is to do good, not to 
some few choice individuals, to some classes 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 175 

or to some nations, but to all men. This is 
to be done as we have opportunity. It is not 
affirmed how the opportunity may offer itself, 
It may be to do good to the body or to the 
soul; it may be from the abundance with 
which God has intrusted us, or it may be 
from the relations which we hold to others. 

But while all are to share in our kind feel- 
ings, and if need be, in our generous deeds, 
this is to be especially the case with our fel- 
low Christians. We have a natural relation 
to the whole human family, inasmuch as we 
are members of that family. We have a 
special relation to our fellow Christians, inas- 
much as we have been redeemed with them 
by the same precious blood, adopted into the 
same spiritual family, and in the case of 
church members, united in the same body. 
We are therefore under peculiar obligations 
to benefit them. We speak more particularly 
of the members of our own church. 

In the first place, this should be done by 
aiding them in their secular affairs. Thus 
we may take them into our employ, assist 
them into business, or patronize them when 
engaged for themselves. By these and simi- 



176 the pastor's gift; or, 

lar means, we may do them great favors, and 
this too without any essential inconvenience 
or loss to ourselves. And further ; our 
brethren's influence and ability to do often 
depends very much on their business pros- 
perity, and hence, whatever temporal aid we 
give them, is indirectly given to the cause of 
religion. And yet still further ; it might be 
well to remember that sometimes, if not often, 
the simple fact that an individual is a profes- 
sor of religion, or a member of a given 
church, may prevent his receiving from oth- 
ers the patronage which he would otherwise 
do ; and if others refuse to patronize him 
because he belongs to our church, most as- 
suredly we should patronize him for the same 
reason. 

But our assistance is more especially called 
for in times of sickness and misfortune. The 
neglect, if not something worse than neglect, 
which is often seen here, is painful in the ex- 
treme. A neighbor, and perhaps a brother 
in Christ is afllicted, and few go to mingle 
their sympathies and tears with his. He is 
long confined to his house by wasting disease, 
and few go to cheer him in his solitude. He 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 177 

is painfully sick, nigh even unto death, and 
yet but few can be found to watch by his 
side, no, not even for a single night. Fell 
misfortune dashes to the ground his fondest 
hopes, and scatters to the winds his pros- 
pects, and men, yes, professed Christian breth- 
ren, pass him by with cold indifference. The 
excuses given for this disregard of the sick 
and unfortunate, are often trivial and unwor- 
thy. " I have so much to do," says one. 
" It makes me sick, or gives me the headache 
to watch," says another. " And I am afraid 
of taking the disease," says a third. " And 
I have so many ways for what I have," adds 
a fourth. But away with such pleas, and 
never let them be heard from the lips of the 
Christian. You have so much to do that you 
can not go ! But which had better suffer, 
your business a little, or your brother's per- 
son much ? You feel a little exhausted, or a 
little unwell, after watching for the night ! 
But would you, if you took the proper time 
to rest the day preceding or the day follow- 
ing ? You are afraid of bringing sickness 
upon yourself or your family ! But is this a 
sufficient reason for leaving your neighbor or 



178 the pastor's gift; or, 

your brother to suffer for the want of proper 
attention ? Is this following the example of 
Christ ? "I was sick and ye visited me not " 
will, at last, sound fearfully in the ears of the 
professing and yet non-acting Christian. 
The sick have a claim upon our attention, 
and startling will be the account of those 
who neglect them. 

As it is in sickness, so it is in misfortune. 
If a brother meets with losses, he should 
have our sympathies. If his losses are such 
as to render a call for our assistance neces- 
sary, that call should be responded to most 
cheerfully. And we should not always wait 
for a direct and urgent appeal for aid. We 
should rather hasten to proffer that aid of 
our own free-will, and as the prompt and 
cheerful offering of our real interest and 
warm affection. Most cheerless is that Be- 
nevolence which has neither eyes, ears, hands, 
feet nor wings of its own, and which ever 
needs teasing and goading in order to give 
the slightest and most reluctant signs of life. 

As to the general duty of aiding the poor 
and unfortunate members of our church, 
there can be no reasonable doubt. It is 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 179 

something which is urged upon us by a com- 
mon humanity, a common piety, and the 
"whole spirit and tenor of the Word of God, 
As to the extent of this aid, there often may 
be a question. Or rather here is a point that 
must be left to the decision of circumstances. 
In the early ages of Christianity, the civil 
law made no provision for the needy of any 
class, and there was therefore a necessity for 
the Church to provide for its own destitute, 
or to leave them to suffer. They nobly did 
the former, and this, without doubt, is the 
course to be pursued in all similar emergen- 
cies. But with us circumstances are differ- 
ent. Here the influence of Gospel precepts 
has been so powerful and so general, as to in- 
duce the law to provide for the needy of 
every class. Each Christian contributes his 
proportion to this fund of civil benevolence, 
and if he becomes needy himself, he has a 
right to draw from it. There is not with us, 
therefore, the necessity of former times and 
of other lands, and it may be justly ques- 
tioned whether every church is morally or 
religiously bound to provide a full mainte- 
nance for its permanent poor, or whether 



180 the pastor's gift; or, 

such poor have any right to expect this, or 
to complain if they do not receive it. If 
churches are large and abundantly able, it is 
but commendable that they should assume 
the whole charge of all those whose circum- 
stances require it. In other cases, we think 
they may be released from furnishing this 
full aid. To be compelled to give it might 
deprive them of the means of supporting the 
institutions of the Gospel, and even threaten 
them with subsequent extinction. Usually, 
however, there is a necessity of saying ten 
words to urge churches to do what is their 
duty, rather than one which may be construed 
as an excuse for doing less. 



IN RELATION TO MINISTERS. 

The instructions of Paul upon this ques- 
tion, though brief, are plain and comprehen- 
sive. Says he, " Let the elders which rule 
well, be counted worthy of double honor." 
And again, " Know them which labor among 
you and are over you in the Lord, and ad- 
monish you, and esteem them very highly in 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 181 

love for their work's sake" A minister then 
is entitled, not only to the love, regard and 
kindness due the other members of the church, 
but to a double measure of this. Especially 
is this the case with those who labor faith- 
fully in word and doctrine. They are to be 
known and esteemed "very highly in love 
for their work's sake." The toils of such, 
their self-denials and sacrifices are great. 
These they take upon themselves for the 
good of the cause of Christ in general, and 
for that of the individual churches for which 
they labor in particular. In return, these 
churches should honorably requite them. In 
preparing the way to make these duties pleas- 
ant, and in carrying them out, let judgment 
and caution be used in selecting pastors, and 
when one is selected or accepted, while you 
receive him as the embassador of God, en- 
deavor to treat him as you would be treated 
were you in his position. Carefully consider 
the peculiarities and the difficulties of his 
office ; remember that he is but a man like 
yourself, and subject to all your weakness, 
wants and infirmities, and that, while his own 
energies are given to the spiritual wants of 
16 



182 the pastor's gift; or, 

his people, he is depending for his own and 
for his family's temporal necessities, on those 
for whom he labors. Hence, leave him not 
without the necessaries of life while he is in 
health, without sympathy in sickness, nor at 
any time demand of him more than any mor- 
tal man can perform. And above all, be fel- 
low workers with him in the cause of Christ, 
and stay up his heart and hands, by your 
ready and cheerful co-operation and earnest 
prayers. Be doubly careful of his feelings 
and character. His interest is your interest. 
His reputation is the church's hope of suc- 
cess. What you do for him, you do for your- 
self and for the cause of Christ. What you 
do against him, you do against yourself and 
against that cause. And be not unreason- 
able in your demands upon his family. In a 
maesure treat them as you would, or do your 
own. Thus his residence and labors among 
you will be made pleasant and happy, and 
his usefulness apparent and abundant. 



V 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 183 



TREATMENT OF OTHER DENOMINATIONS. 

As it may have been clearly indicated in 
other places, we are not advocates of an at- 
tempted union between all different classes 
of churches. However desirable such a thing 
might seem to be in itself, we view it as ut- 
terly impracticable. This would be the case 
in the present state of things, and ever must 
be the case, while men are by nature and 
circumstances what they now are, and while 
they are permitted to read and think for 
themselves. All attempts at any thing 
like a melting and fusing into one our vary- 
ing sects, are not only useless, but worse 
than useless, serving to create, rather than 
to allay bad feelings, and to divide still more 
rather than unite. Cheerfully, then, let there 
be different names or different orders of 
churches. Let each Christian belong to his 
own chosen band or division, and let each 
one labor, by all judicious and Christian 
means, to secure the prevalence of his own 
honest and prayerful sentiments. 



184 the pastor's gift; or, 

But granting all this, and we believe it to 
be the only true and consistent course, it 
should always be remembered that different 
denominations, like different branches of the 
same family, should owe each other nothing 
but love and good-will. They sustain among 
themselves an important and near relation; 
they all have one great and common parent ; 
one great and common interest, one main and 
essential object, and should ever be bound 
together by one strong and mutual tie. Like 
the different and minor divisions of one and 
the same family, they should live together in 
harmony, peace and love. Where practica- 
ble, let each have its own house of worship, 
labor to promote its own interest, and cheer- 
fully yield to all others those rights and 
privileges which it desires for itself. Let 
members of different communions act togeth- 
er where they can see, feel, and act in har- 
mony, and where they can not, let them 
freely and kindly separate. Any bitterness 
of feeling, any unkindness or acerbity of 
expression, should never be found. All 
should love as brethren, and as they have 
opportunity, do each other good. In a great- 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 185 

er or less degree, we should show the same 
regard and kindness to the members of other 
churches which we do to those of our own. 
And so indeed, we should to all men. This 
is the true " Evangelical Alliance," an alli- 
ance which will carry conviction to an ob- 
serving world, and the only useful church 
or denominational alliance, which we can 
ever hope to form. We love peace, we love 
harmony, we love union, and that we may 
ever have these, we would let each nation have 
its own laws, each town its own boundaries, 
each district its own limits, each family its 
own house, and each church its own place 
of worship and privileges ; and then we would 
have all churches, all families, all districts, 
all towns, and all nations, bound together by 
one great bond of brotherhood. 



16* 



186 



THE PASTOR* S GIFT; OR ? 



m 

CHAPTER VI. 

THE SUPPORT OF RELIGION. 



THE DUTY OF SUPPORTING RELIGION. 

This world has little of good, either ac- 
complished or perpetuated, without toil. It 
is painfully so in regard to religion. Our 
earth is not congenial to its growth in a sim- 
ple and pure character, and if, in this char- 
acter, it exists and flourishes at all, it must 
be through great and unwearied efforts. 

But if effort is required here, who are to 
make it? Who but the open and avowed 
friends of religion ? Others may do some- 
thing, and often much, but allowing this, and 
this we do cheerfully, religion must, never- 
theless, look first and principally for its main- 
tenance to the members of our different 
churches. To aid as far as it is in his power 
in this support, we affirm to be the duty of 
every Christian. 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 187 

First, we are urged to this by a considera- 
tion of the civil influence of religion. Eve- 
ry one can perceive, at a glance, the import- 
ance of correct morality to the well-being of 
society. It is its life-blood. Let this be 
pure and healthy, and the whole body will 
be sound and vigorous. Let it be corrupted, 
and it will bear disease and decay to every 
extremity. But on what ground does the 
existence of a sound morality depend ? Evi- 
dently on that of a pure religion. The one 
embraces and upholds the other, and is es- 
sential to its existence in a healthy state. 
Religion and Morality hold to each other the 
relation of mother and daughter, the one be- 
ing nursed by and receiving its character from 
the other. Corrupt and destroy religion, and 
with this you will corrupt and destroy moral- 
ity ; and with the corruption and destruction 
of morality, will follow that of industry, 
peace and general prosperity. Go where you 
will, and the character of religion gives char- 
acter to society. It is so in heathen lands, 
in those which are Mohammedan, and also in 
those which are Christian. Spend one Sab- 
bath in a place, learn the state of its church 



188 the pastor's gift; OR ; 



or churches, and observe how that Sabbath 
is improved, and you may, at once, judge of 
the desirableness or undesirableness of that 
place as one of a permanent residence. There 
may be individual exceptions to the general 
rule, or there may be individuals who possess 
high moral integrity while they wholly dis- 
card religion. But such examples are rare, 
and even in these, we shall often find that a 
former religious education, or present sur- 
rounding religious influences, has had much 
to do in modifying and shaping the character. 

Here, then, in the moral and civil influ- 
ences of religion, we may see the importance 
of giving to it a free and full support. This 
support appeals directly to our present per- 
sonal interest, and not to the interest of 
Christians alone, but to that of every well- 
wisher of community. It is for the abundant 
present good of society. It appeals even to 
our pecuniary interest. It will be cheaper to 
sustain religion than not to sustain it. It 
will take less to build meeting-houses and 
provide for the faithful preaching of the Gos- 
pel, than it will to support jails, courts, and 
alms-houses. It will be more happy to dwell 



OUTLINES OP CHRISTIAN DUTY. 189 

amid peace, plenty and quietness, than to be 
surrounded by immorality and vice, and to 
live in the consequent and constant fear for 
our property, virtue and life. 

But independent of any civil consideration, 
a just regard to our own personal piety re- 
quires this support of religion. " What shall 
it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole 
world and lose his own soul ? or what shall a 
man give in exchange for his soul?" Sup- 
pose that religion brings us no temporal gain ; 
suppose that so far as this world is con- 
cerned, it is only burdensome ; and yet shall 
it not be sustained for the sake of our own 
happiness as Christians, and for the sake of 
its future and eternal consequences ? What 
man of piety can have any other thought ? 

To the Christian, religion is above every 
thing else. It is this which binds his will in 
sweet subjection to the will of the Supreme 
One. It is this which diffuses through his 
bosom joys otherwise unknown, throws a mel- 
lowing influence over the rugged pathway of 
life, lights up the darkness of the grave, and 
clothes the future with the strong anticipa- 
tions of a glorious immortality. It is this 



190 the pastor's gift; or, 

which is the first in his affections, the highest 
in his hopes, and the last to be yielded. For 
the Christian, then, to support this religion, 
is a duty above all question. Had it not 
been for its former support by others, where 
now would have been his hopes as a Chris- 
tian ? And let the public means of grace be 
taken from him, and let him be cut off from 
all present intercourse with the pious and the 
good, and where will soon be those very hopes 
which he, at the present time, so fondly cher- 
ishes ? They will be lost in forgetfulness, or 
be buried beneath gloomy shades. Personal 
piety is something which can not be held or 
enjoyed alone. It can not be so, except the 
providence of God has separated us from our 
ordinary intercourse with men. Its light can 
not be hid under a measure and not be lost 
to those who possess it, as well as to those 
who surround them. It is in watering that 
we are to be watered. It is in blessing that 
we are to be blessed. Our religious interest 
is so united and blended with that of others, 
that as they prosper, we prosper, and as they 
neglect and grow indifferent, we feel the in- 
fluence. We can not separate ourselves from 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 191 

the public interest and support of religion, 
and yet hope to keep up and increase our 
own personal piety. In proportion, then, as 
we appreciate that piety, we shall be urged 
to the duty now before us. And have we no 
gratitude in this matter ? Have we no be- 
nevolence ? Have we ourselves been saved 
by the efforts of others, and yet shall we not 
be urged to do in return ? Shall we see the 
impenitent around us in the same dangerous 
position in which we once were, and yet be 
unwilling to exert ourselves in their behalf? 
We might well blush for our piety if we 
would. 

But there is a higher ground for us to take 
than that of mere personal interest. The 
duty before us is the solemn requirement of 
Grod. This may be seen by looking, a mo- 
ment, at the economy of the Jewish nation, 
and the instruction and practice of the early 
Christians. In the moral and civil code, 
given to the Israelites by Moses, religion is 
ever placed first. This is incorporated with, 
and made uppermost in, all their laws and 
institutions. Besides the numerous special 
offerings of the Jews, the support of their 



192 the pastor's gift; or, 

regular religious service required a tenth of 
their entire income. And do we suppose 
that this, so important requirement of the 
Israelites, throws no light upon our duty ? 
Have we a higher and purer religion than 
they, and yet is the zeal and the effort, re- 
quired in the support of the less, to be thrown 
away in the support of the greater? We 
could hardly believe this if directly taught it 
in the Word of God. 

But what says the unerring word of the 
Saviour ? The injunction is, " Seek ye first 
the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, 
and all these things shall be added unto 
you." Here, as it is every where in the New 
Testament, and ever ought to be in our prac- 
tice, religion is placed uppermost. Induce 
men first to pay a proper regard to this, and 
then, as a natural and necessary consequence, 
all needful attention to worldly things will 
follow. And not only should religion be 
placed uppermost, but it must be so or we 
can not be Christians. " Whosoever he be 
of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, 
he can not be my disciple. " And what is 
the great commission given to the church in 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 



193 



the last command of Christ ? It is not only 
to sustain Christianity as it then existed, but 
to extend it throughout the world. So our 
Saviour spoke. So the early Christians un- 
derstood their obligations, and so they prac- 
tised. They were ready to have "plucked 
out " their " own eyes " for the sake of those 
who preached the Gospel to them. They 
took "joyfully the spoiling of their goods.' ' 
— They were willing to give of themselves 
as the Lord had prospered them, and were 
even forward to go unto prison and unto 
death. But was religion one thing in the 
early ages of the church, and is it another, 
and a very different thing now? No one 
will pretend this. If not, it is the duty of 
those who now put on its high and holy pro- 
fession, to follow the example of its early 
friends, and support it — support it if need 
be, at the price of effort and sacrifice on 
their part. 

And this is not a duty of slight importance. 
It is one that is cardinal ; something which 
we are to place first in point of time, and 
first in importance, and something which we 
must perform. Religion has an influence on 
17 



194 the pastor's gift; or ; 

all which pertains to our present welfare. 
It embraces our highest and our eternal in- 
terests. It is the requirement of God, and 
to sustain it, we are pledged by our private 
vows, and by those public and solemn obliga- 
tions which we assumed on uniting with the 
church. Neglect here brings a woe upon 
ourselves. It is high treason against the 
Almighty. "Is it a time for you, 0 ye, to 
dwell in your ceiled houses, and this house 
[the house of God] lies waste?" — "Will a 
man," — will a professing Christian — " rob 
God?" 



RELIGION IS TO BE SUPPORTED BY OUR PROPERTY, 

If it is our duty to sustain religion, this 
fact will require the use of all the means 
requisite to do so. But no truth is more evi- 
dent than that money, or its equivalent, is 
one of these means. 

To begin wit7i, this is wanted to prepare a 
suitable place of worship. And then it is 
also required to keep this place in proper 
order, and to sustain in it the regular admin- 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 195 

istration of the Word, The first of these is 
but seldom called for ; the second constantly. 
In regard to the first, all that we need say is, 
that when it is necessary to build a house of 
worship, or to repair an old one, the sufficient 
means should be furnished without delay. 
The effort may seem to be great, but it is 
seldom called for, and if really called for, 
the demand should be viewed as imperative. 
Our feelings should be that it must be done. 
The house of God must be built, even in 
preference to our own. 

But you say the church or society is ex- 
travagant in building or repairing their sanc- 
tuary. But would you dwell in your own 
"ceiled houses'' while the "house of God 
lies waste?" Would you have your own 
dwellings beautifully lighted and warmed, 
and yet have the dim lamp and the scanty 
fire in the temple of the Most High ? Would 
you prepare your best with which to enter- 
tain your neighbors, and your poorest with 
which to receive your God ? It is true that 
extravagance in any thing connected with 
the Gospel, is undesirable, but give not this 
name to that which is demanded by a just 



196 



the pastor's gift; OR ; 



sense of propriety and decency, and even 
by the very existence of the cause of religion 
•where you reside. 

But it is in the maintenance of the minis- 
try that the greatest pecuniary demands are 
made. The ministry, however, is something 
which can not be dispensed with. To think 
of this would be as useless as it w r ould be to 
think of cultivating a farm without laborers 
— having schools without teachers — or car- 
rying on war without superior officers. The 
Christian ministry is the prime agency, or- 
dained of God, for the preservation and ex- 
tension of His cause. "And He gave some 
apostles, and some prophets, and some evan- 
gelists, and some pastors and teachers, for 
the perfecting of the saints, for the work of 
the ministry, for the edifying of the body of 
Christ. " Dispense with the public services 
of the sanctuary, and our churches would 
soon be broken into fragments, and scattered 
to the winds. Silence the voice of the pulpit, 
and the last echo of its notes would be the 
pre- death-knell of Christianity. 

To hope to sustain religion, then, we must 
have, not a class of men who during the 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 197 

week do as others do, and on the Sabbath 
enter the public desk and say what first comes 
to hand. We must have those who are 
wholly devoted to this work. Says Paul, 
" Meditate on these things; give thyself 
ivholly to them ; that thy profiting may ap- 
pear unto all." But if we have those who 
are wholly consecrated to this work, or to the 
varied duties of the ministry, and through 
these to our benefit, the obligation to return 
them an equivalent is plain. Every man's 
time, hands, mind and acquirements are his 
own. They are God's gifts to him by which 
he is to provide for his own necessities, and 
that of those naturally and justly depending 
upon him. But if we, as individuals or so- 
cieties, receive into our service this time of 
his, his strength of body, mind and acquire- 
ments, it is but the first, the most simple and 
strongest dictate of justice that we remuner- 
ate. Other men are naturally under no 
stronger obligations to us than we are to 
them. The ministry owe to the cause of 
Christ, no more than every individual Chris- 
tian. Christians therefore have no right, 
either for their own personal benefit, or for 
17* 



198 



THE PxlSTOR's gift; or, 



that of their common cause, to ask for the 
minister's unrequited toil. Self-denial and 
personal sacrifice on the part of ministers are 
most commendable virtues. The peculiarity 
of their position, also, and a just regard to 
the purity of their calling, demand of them 
the yielding of those larger hopes of present 
gain, "which others may justly cherish and 
honorably pursue. But grant all this, and it 
detracts nothing from the obligation affirmed. 

In full accordance with the views now 
stated, are the frequent declarations of the 
Bible. There is scarcely a truth in the New 
Testament more plain or prominent than the 
one now before us. Says our Saviour to the 
apostles, " Provide neither gold, nor silver, 
nor brass in your purses ; nor scrip for your 
journey, neither two coats, neither shoes, nor 
yet staves ; for the workman is worthy of his 
meat" That is, the apostles were to labor 
for the souls of men, and those for w r hom 
they thus labored w^re to provide for their 
temporal necessities. And if such was to be 
the fact at that time, when there were no 
churches, and but few, if any, Christians, 
how much more so now, when large and able 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 199 

churches abound, and Christians are widely 
multiplied. Says Paul, strongly enforcing 
the duty now before us, " Even so hath the 
Lord ordained that they who preach the 
Gospel, should live of the Gospel." And 
again, " Let him that is taught in the Word, 
communicate to him that teacheth in all good 
things." No man is to go into the church 
to be a mere drone there ; to live in inglori- 
ous ease, or to sap his spiritual sustenance 
out of others. He is to be a laborer in that 
church, and one evident part of this labor is 
to help sustain those who are the church's 
public and acknowledged servants. And this 
is not the duty of A or B, but of 0 and D 
and of every member. 

And further ; the language above quoted, 
shows the ground on which this support is to 
be based. It is not, as some seem to sup- 
pose, a work of charity, but of justice. It 
is rendering an equivalent for an equivalent. 
"He that is taught" is to do for "him that 
teacheth;" "for the laborer is worthy of his 
hire" 

But connected with this duty, there is an- 
other point which deserves attention. It is 



200 



the pastor's gift; or, 



the method by which the. work involved is to 
be done. This may be by subscription, rent 
on slips or pews, or by a just equalization. 
To the first method named, or that of the 
voluntary subscription, no very valid objec- 
tion can be offered, provided each one will 
come forward and subscribe his full propor- 
tion and pay it. But where churches raise 
their funds in this way, there is too often a 
most unrighteous burden thrown on the few, 
w T hile others, equally able, do comparatively 
nothing, or the minister is left unpaid, and 
perhaps to be overwhelmed or discouraged 
by the consequent embarrassments. The 
second method, or rent on slips or pews, often 
operates well, and in many cases is the best 
perhaps which can be adopted. This is es- 
pecially so in those instances in which the 
house is owned by the church or society, and 
in which the population is fluctuating. 

The third method named is that of a just 
equalization. Says the great apostle, " For 
I mean not that other men be eased and ye 
burdened; but by an equality, that now at 
this time, your abundance may be a supply 
for your wants, that there may be equality.' ' 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 201 



This instruction, as at first given, has refer- 
ence to benevolent collections, but the princi- 
ple embraced is equally applicable to church 
support. It is the righteous and Gospel 
principle of equalizing pecuniary burdens. 
And this we consider to be the true and most 
desirable plan for a church or society to adopt 
in meeting any and all necessary expenses. 
Let the church or the society (as the one or 
the other acts), meet and decide what is need- 
ful to be done. Then let them appoint a ju- 
dicious committee, whose duty it shall be to 
divide this sum among the different members 
of the church, in proportion to their property 
and circumstances. We say in proportion to 
property and circumstances ; for often where 
there are two men of equal ratable property, 
there is not the same ready means. This 
may be owing to the different positions in 
which the property lies, to the unlike circum- 
stances in the two families, or to the fact of 
uninterrupted health and prosperity on the 
one hand, and sickness and misfortune on 
the other. The civil law may not be able to 
show favor in such cases, but in a church, or 
in a religious society, where justice should 



202 



the pastor's gift; or, 



ever be blended with generosity, this may 
and should be done. 

We are aware, that many objections may 
be made to the method of raising funds now 
before us, and yet it is but the simple rule 
of equality, and where there are equal privi- 
leges, who would not make the burden of 
them, if burden there be, equal also ? Would 
you wish your neighbor, no more able than 
yourself, to pay one half or two thirds of 
your regular town taxes ? Were you on a 
journey in company with others, would you 
partake with them freely and fully, of what- 
ever was needful, and yet have them meet the 
entire expense ? Or if you were on a party 
of pleasure, would you ask or even allow 
your companions to release you from one 
half or one fourth of your just proportion of 
the necessary charge ? You would indig- 
nantly spurn such a thought. Would you 
then go into a church, and equally share all 
the conveniences, instructions and privileges 
which others do, and then shrink from bear- 
ing your just proportion of any needful bur- 
den ? You must have little self-respect, little 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 203 

sense of right, and less love for religion, if 
you would. 

But you say the committee may assign you 
more than your just proportion. This is pos- 
sible, and it is equally possible that they may 
assign you less. Should your ability, how- 
ever, be over estimated in comparison with 
that of others, this fact could be readily ad- 
justed on a fair representation of the case. 
Where, however, the expenses of a church 
are met by subscription, many a brother 
would be glad to exchange this practice for 
the one before us, and then have an eighth, 
and even a fourth, added to his just assess- 
ment. 

But you say you do not want to give any 
more than jonfeel to. We reply that this is 
not a question of feeling, but of justice, and 
that if you do not feel to do what is just, 
you may be sure your feelings are wrong. 

But you add that you want your liberty 
and the privilege of acting freely in what 
you do. We reply that no man can have 
any just liberty to do more or less than duty 
to God and man requires, and that if you 



204 



the pastor's gift; or, 



feel as you ought, you will consider it both 
your duty and your privilege to do, cheerfully 
and freely, whatever the cause of God and 
your own salvation may demand. 

You object again that you have a large 
family to support. But this is one of the 
very strongest reasons why you should make 
strenuous efforts to sustain in your midst the 
ministrations of religion. Beyond a bare suffi- 
ciency of food and clothing, there is nothing 
so important for the young, as a good meeting 
to which you can lead them on the Sabbath. 

You complain that the church attempts to 
do too much. We have already observed 
that the church or the society should decide 
by vote what to do. But in voting, who shall 
govern, the minority or the majority? 

You say that your minister is receiving too 
much. But by what rule do you judge? 
Would you rank his capacities and education 
among the lowest or the highest in the com- 
munity? Evidently the latter. But if his 
capacity and education are among the first, 
why should he not have an income which would 
in some faint degree, correspond ? And yet 
is not the reverse of this true in nine cases 



OUTLINES OP CHRISTIAN DUTY. 205 

out of ten, and even with your own minister, 
of whose imaginary large salary you com- 
plain ? Ministers seldom do any more than 
live, while with the same ability and effort 
devoted to some secular employment, they 
would soon become rich. 

But we need not follow these objections 
further. Under ordinary circumstances, there 
are none which will bear the test of a candid 
and impartial examination. We do not say 
that this plan should be adopted in all places, 
and independent of every possible attending 
circumstance. Far from this. We do say, 
however, if it should be generally adopted 
and strictly carried out, it would give to our 
churches a sense of justice and an efficiency 
now too seldom known. 

One point more in this connection. In de- 
ciding on the sum to be raised, let it be fixed 
somewhat above the amount deemed neces- 
sary, and let it be promptly paid. The ob- 
ject of this higher assessment and this 
promptness, is to guard against removals, 
sickness and death, and to save the embar- 
rassment and suffering which may otherwise 
follow. Let each member lay by him "in 
18 



206 the pastor's gift; or, 

store " according to the apostolic injunction, 
and let him pay it to the treasurer, unurged 
and unsolicited. "Why should this officer be 
taxed to go to different individuals again and 
again, and yet, perhaps, be disappointed after 
all ? Let each one have a practice unto him- 
self, to pay his church dues, and to pay them 
quarterly and without solicitation. And let 
each church and society have a Medo-Per- 
sian law, that their minister shall be paid 
according to agreement, paid promptly and 
paid fully. No true minister preaches for 
money, and yet if he gives his entire labor to a 
church and society, it is expected and prom- 
ised that he shall have a support in return. 
The arrangement with him to this end is a 
regular business transaction, and should be 
held as sacred and binding as an arrange- 
ment with any other individual. A course 
the reverse of this is unjust, may subject him 
to the greatest inconvenience, most painful 
anxiety, and, possibly, hazard his reputation 
and his usefulness. Others expect him to be 
prompt in his pecuniary engagements, and 
demand of him their fulfillment to the very 
last letter. But how can he possibly be thus 



OUTLINES OP CHRISTIAN DUTY. 207 



punctual, if his people fail in their engage- 
ments to him ? He has imposed upon him a 
task worse than Egyptian, and those who 
thus burden God's embassador, should feel 
that though there is no power on earth to 
call them to an account, there is one above 
that will. 



RELIGION IS TO BE SUPPORTED BY OUR PERSONAL 
EFFORTS. 

What we have already said is important. 
We should indeed provide a place of worship 
and support in it the public administrations of 
the Truth. But we must not stop here. We 
must go to that house of worship and place 
ovrselves under the sound of that Truth. 
We here speak more particularly of the public 
exercises of the Sabbath. 

At the close of the early creation, the 
Sabbath was instituted as a day of rest and 
sacred observance. As such it was reap- 
pointed in the Jewish code, was ever recog- 
nized by our Saviour ; and, changed in honor 
of His resurrection from the last to the first 



208 



the pastor's gift; or, 



day of the week, it continued to be thus ob- 
served by the early Christians. These facts 
make our own duty evident. But to impress 
it still more forcibly upon our minds, and 
especially the duty of attending public wor- 
ship, we have this, as well as other, earnest 
injunctions of the apostle, " Let us consider 
one another to provoke unto love and to good 
works ; not forsaking the assembling of our- 
selves together, as the manner of some is." 

But if it is a duty to assemble for worship 
on the Sabbath, on whom does this duty de- 
volve? Or, circumstances being equal, is 
there any reason why one should be held by 
it more than another ? Certainly not. Such 
a supposition would be to exalt or depress 
one part of our race above or below the other. 
The obligation is binding upon all. It is one 
which we owe, in common, to a common Cre- 
ator. We all alike need its influence and 
are equally benefited by the knowledge which 
it imparts. To neglect here is to our own 
injury. It is a sin against God. Every 
Christian, and we may justly add, every 
member of the human family, should feel 
that it is his sacred obligation to be in the 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 209 

sanctuary of God on the Sabbath. It is a 
duty that is imperative, and one that can not 
be set aside without cause and with impunity. 
Reader, do you observe this duty ? Do you 
observe it in full and just accordance with 
the great design of its Author ? 

But says some one, I do not like the preach- 
er. Do not like the preacher ! But why ? 
Because he is not called of God to his work ? 
Because he sends arrows of conviction to 
your heart ? or because you are wiser than 
God in reference to the men whom He should 
make the expositors of his truth ? But sup- 
pose the preacher is not your favorite, or 
that he does not in all respects come up to 
your idea of ministerial excellence ; what has 
this to do with your natural and assumed ob- 
ligations, and with your voluntary and solemn 
vows ? Evidently nothing. 

But says another, the weather was unpleas- 
ant last Sabbath. And would you, for the 
same cause, have remained away from some 
scene of long anticipated pleasure ? Would 
you have broken a positive engagement with 
a neighbor ? Or would you have given up 
your ordinary business? If not, how can 
18* 



210 the pastor's gift; OR ; 

you justify yourself in neglecting your ap- 
pointment with your God ? Is an engage- 
ment with Him less sacred and less binding 
than one with man ? 

Says another, my health is poor. But is 
your health constantly poor ? Or are you 
only troubled with the Sunday sickness ? 
Can you work hard from early Monday 
morn, till late Saturday eve, and yet be 
sick all day on the Sabbath, and this, too, 
week after week ? Strange indeed, if so. 
But if this is the fact, whence is the cause ? 
Is it through an overruling Providence, or 
through your own unjust over exertions dur- 
ing the week ? And if the latter, what bet- 
ter is your conduct than it w T ould be, if you 
were to do less during the week and make 
it up on the Sabbath ? 

But says another, I went to the X meeting 
last Sabbath. But do you not belong to the 
Y church ? And what propriety, consistency 
or reason is there in your uniting with one 
church, supporting its minister, and then, 
ever and anon, be roving from meeting to 
meeting, and perhaps to those in which sen- 
timents are promulgated the reverse of your 



OUTLINES OP CHRISTIAN DUTY. 211 

own, and those which you have adopted after 
the most mature and prayerful examination ? 
Is not this destroying with one hand what 
you are endeavoring to build up with the 
other ? Are you not also lessening your own 
influence as a man and as a Christian ? If 
you have no regular meeting of your own, 
then go to others ; go any where, where you 
can do good or receive good ; but never be 
one thing in theory and another in practice. 

But we are not to stop with going to meet- 
ing ourselves alone. We are to use our in- 
fluence to induce others to attend. Some- 
times a kind or admonitory word may be of 
use to a remiss brother or usual member of 
the congregation. But the special effort call- 
ed for is among those who habitually neglect 
the public means of grace. Almost every 
church and every Christian family and indi- 
vidual is surrounded by such. But shall 
these be permitted to go on in their thought- 
lessness, and without an effort to instruct or 
save them? Every Christian must say no. 
But if effort is required here, who shall make 
it ? Manifestly those near by, and who, con- 
sequently, know what is needed. 



212 the pastor's gift; or, 

In small societies, and in sparse and fixed 
communities, the pastor may do something. 
He soon becomes acquainted with each of his 
own regular congregation, and learns the 
names and characters of each family within 
the limits of his parish. And not only so, 
but possibly he may find time to visit those 
whose case is before us, and thus personally 
interest himself in their behalf. By this 
means he may win their confidence, attach 
them to himself, and allure them to the house 
of God. But allow this to be true, and there 
will yet remain much for the private Chris- 
tian to accomplish. ' He should second these 
praiseworthy efforts of his pastor, and, push- 
ing beyond this, should endeavor to effect 
that which is out of the pastor's reach. The 
pastor may allure, but the private Christian 
can urge. The one can converse with the 
thoughtless and negligent in private, but the 
other can take them by the hand and lead 
them to the house of God. 

Thus in our smallest parishes, and in our 
most retired and sparse communities, there 
is a work for the private Christian to do. 
But while this is true in such communities, it 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 213 

is emphatically so in our larger villages and 
cities. In these the minister is scarcely able 
to extend his acquaintance and attentions to 
the members of his own congregation, and 
much less can he go far beyond this. But 
in each of these places there are multitudes 
who seem to care nothing for their souls, and 
habitually neglect all the public means of 
grace. In the very midst of numerous 
churches, and surrounded by multiplied priv- 
ileges, they are pressing their way to the 
grave, almost as ignorant of divine truth as 
the blind idolater, and thoughtless as the 
brutes that perish. How can such be reach- 
ed and benefited ? If they are reached, and 
are brought under a religious influence at all, 
it must be through the agency of private 
Christians. The ministry, unless especially 
devoted to this class as missionaries, have 
their heads, hearts and hands full elsewhere. 
They are of necessity nearly or quite stran- 
gers to most of the poor, the negligent and 
the vicious around them, and however anxi- 
ous they may be to do so, they can not es- 
sentially benefit them. But it is different 
with private Christians. These know them ; 



214 the pastor's gift; OR ; 

they meet them almost daily, have them in 
their employ, have much influence over them, 
and if they will, may do them good. It may 
be that these negligent individuals and fami- 
lies know better than they do, and many of 
them might do different if they chose. And 
yet it may be possible that they are not all 
so much to blame. Some may be kept from 
meeting by their poverty, some by ignorance, 
some by prejudice, which has been early and 
perseveringly instilled into their minds, and 
some from the fact that they are young and 
diffident, or are strangers in a strange place. 
But whatever may be the validity or invalid- 
ity of their excuse, they ought not to be 
overlooked. They are a part of the human 
family. They have souls to be saved or lost, 
and their case commends itself most urgently 
to all the pious and philanthropic. They af- 
ford the most ample opportunity for the com- 
mon Christian to do good, and " To him that 
knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, it is 
sin." Here the most obscure servants of 
Christ may gather souls to Him. Here they 
may exert an influence which will tell, not 
only on the present generation, but on those 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 215 

yet to come, — an influence which, will speak 
long and loud when they are dead. Especi- 
ally is this the case in regard to the young. 
In every large village and in every city there 
are numbers of this class, who are without 
knowledge, and comparatively without the 
means of knowledge. Many of them have 
intemperate or vicious parents ; many are 
orphans, and many are away from parental 
restraints and kindly influences, while they 
are encircled by those which are adverse. 
As such come under the observation and in- 
fluence of Christians, these should interest 
themselves in their behalf, conduct them to 
the sanctuary of God, and thus preserve 
them from the dominion of bad associates, 
from the haunts of vice and dissipation, and 
perhaps from an entire wreck of morals here, 
and from woe hereafter. • And then, younger 
still, may be found children, multitudes of 
whom, aside from Christian friends, have no 
one to care for their welfare. These may be 
gathered into Sabbath Schools and meetings, 
be brought under wholesome influences, and 
be benefited almost beyond the power of 
hope. Thus the cause of Christ will be 



216 the pastor's gift; or, 

honored and built up ; thus immortal souls 
will be blessed and saved ; and thus the 
Christian, who faithfully labors in this line, 
will receive a rich reward in his own bosom. 

Here then is a work, and a great work, 
for the private Christian. Here he can be a 
" light" and a " guide " to others. Here he 
may gather to the Saviour and to himself, 
those who will shed the tear of gratitude 
over his grave, or having gone before him to 
the future world, will there "receive" him 
" into everlasting habitations." Reader, have 
you fully pondered this part of your duty ? 
Are you performing it to the full extent of a 
pious judgment and an enlightened conscience. 

THE LORD'S SUPPER. 

On this subject we would call attention to 
the design of the Lord's Supper, its influ- 
ence when observed, and the duty of observ- 
ing it. 

The design of this Itstitution we suppose 
to be commemorative. As Jacob in the wil- 
derness erected his pillar, and as Moses, on 
coming out of Egypt, established the pass- 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 217 

over ; or to take more modern facts ; as the 
monument was erected on Bunker's Hill, or 
as we observe the birth-day of our nation, 
each being established or observed to keep 
in memory an important past event, so it is 
with the Lord's Supper. It is monumental 
in its character. It is commemorative in its 
design. It carries our thoughts back to that 
great event — the death of Christ and the 
commencement of the Christian church. It 
appeals directly to the feelings of every re- 
newed man ; points him to the Saviour as the 
author of his hopes, and strengthens and en- 
courages him to persevere. 

Says the Saviour, " This is my body which 
is given for you. This do in remembrance 
of me. * * * This cup is the New Tes- 
tament in my blood which is shed for you." 
That is, this bread represents my body, and 
this cup represents my blood. And says the 
apostle, " As often as ye eat this bread and 
drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death 
till He come." You both show your belief 
in it and furnish a proof of .its having actu- 
ally occurred. 

Here then we have the clear design of this 
19 



218 the pastor's gift; or, 



Institution, It is to bring Christ and His 
cross directly before us, and thus refresh 
our minds by way of remembrance. Knowing 
our proneness to forget, or to have the sight 
of the eye arrest the attention and affect the 
heart, this Supper was wisely and mercifully 
ordained to act as a corrective, to call to mind 
that which is passed, to awaken anew our in- 
terst, and to keep the Redeemer himself con- 
stantly before us, as crucified in our behalf. 
Thus the observance becomes to the believer 
one of the most peculiar interest, and to the 
unbeliever one of convincing evidence. It 
awakens the purest feelings of the renewed 
heart, and to the unrenewed, it is a most im- 
pressive argument in favor of the truth of 
Christianity, and of the duty of all to em- 
brace it. If this observance was not estab- 
lished by Christ, and on the occasion asserted, 
by whom, when, or where was it established ? 
Let the skeptic answer, or be silent and 
believe. 

The influence of observing this Supper. 
This is in accordance with its wise and benefi- 
cent design. It is most impressive and hap- 
py. It is like visiting the tomb of a dear 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 219 

and departed friend, and thus bringing that 
friend fresh and forcibly before the mind. 
It is like taking a new view of the portrait 
of one most fondly loved. Whether that 
friend is already in his grave, or is only ab- 
sent in some distant part of the world, a 
glance at this portrait is alike impressive. It 
awakens feelings which nothing else can. 
Especially is this the case, if the choice paint- 
ing or daguerreotype has been intrusted to us 
as a parting gift, and with the injunction to 
preserve it as a memento. So in coming to the 
Lord's Supper. This table is the monument 
of Christ's death. Its emblems are the por- 
traitures of His body and blood, broken and 
shed in our behalf. They are the expressive 
mementos of His love, and the earnest pledges 
of his undying interest in our salvation. 
When the missionary, Judson, was in this 
country a few years since, he visited the 
birthplace and early residence of his first 
wife. While there^ he entered a room, where 
the first object that met his eye, was an ex- 
act portrait of that wife, as she was in all 
her youth and beauty.. The effect was over- 
powering. The features, the form and the 



220 



the pastor's gift; or, 



devotion of that loved one, and her sufferings 
in his behalf, were all directly and freshly in 
view. How could he but weep, and how sa- 
cred and impressive must have been the re- 
flections of that hour. So it is in the case 
of the communion, as we understandingly go 
to that sacred scene. Here the emblamatic 
picture of Christ is before the eye, and thus 
brings Him before the mind in all his love 
and sufferings for us. Our religious sym- 
pathies are reawakened ; we are carried back 
in thought to the day of our spiritual adop- 
tion, and forward to the consummation of our 
hopes in heaven. What we were, what we 
are, and what we hope to be, are all vividly 
impressed upon the mind, and we are made 
to feel that upon Jesus rests all our depend- 
ence, both for the present and the future. 
Our darkness is often dissipated, our hopes 
revived, and our strength renewed. There 
is no scene in which we can engage, no duty 
which we can perform, and no privilege which 
we are permitted to enjoy, which so forcibly 
and so happily affects us, as the one under con- 
sideration. We can not go to this hallowed 
table, suitably contemplate its design, and 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 221 

partake of its provisions, without returning 
to our homes with deeper and better feelings 
than those with which we went. Its influ- 
ence is "as cold waters to a thirsty soul — 
like the shadow of a great rock in a weary 
land." It inspires us with new hopes, and 
urges forward to greater pious effort. It is 
as a renewing of our spiritual life. 

Now, if the influence of observing the 
Lord's Supper is thus happy, the duty of do- 
ing this would seem to follow as a matter of 
course. We are urged to it on the same 
principle that we are urged to eat, if we are 
hungry, or drink, if we are thirsty. 

While in this world we are encircled by 
adverse influences. Many of the common 
employments of life, numerous associates, 
and the various objects with which we are 
daily conversant, all have a direct, or an in- 
direct tendency to draw us away from Christ. 
They incline the mind downward and render 
the affections earthly. We need, therefore, 
a counteracting influence. This is to be de- 
rived from the performance of our different 
duties, but from none more directly and fully 
than the one now before us. This observ- 
19* 



222 



the pastor's gift ; OR, 



ance is an emblematic interview between 
Christ and ourselves, and the impression 
which it leaves behind it, is like that derived 
from an interview in fact. A visit here 
places the scenes of Calvary directly before 
the mind, and collects and fixes the thoughts 
upon the bleeding Redeemer. It reminds us 
of the guilt of sin and humbles us in view of 
our own past transgressions. It brings to 
remembrance the Author of our hopes and 
the great source of out present dependence. 
It invigorates our drooping courage and gives 
new strength for a further contest with sin. 
It reawakens our motives to perseverance, 
and imparts new strength for the perform- 
ance of duty. Who then may dare neglect it ? 

But beyond this happy influence, and in- 
dependent of it, we have the positive com- 
mand of Christ — " This do in remembrance 
of me." The injunction is imperative, and 
this imperative injunction of our Redeemer, 
followed, as it was, by the constant practice 
of the early disciples, should at once and 
fully decide for us the point of duty. We 
have no room left for doubt. The command 
of Christ and the example of the apostles is 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 223 

our law. They are the law of all Christians, 
of all ages, and of all nations — uniform, in- 
variable, and ever binding. 

But says some one, I feel myself unworthy 
of the duty. We reply that this question is 
not one of worthiness or unworthiness on our 
part, but of obedience or disobedience. It 
is what Christ commands, and we have no 
liberty to disobey. He offers it to us as a 
privilege, and his kindness ■ most assuredly 
deserves and demands our acceptance. 

But says another, I am so far from what 
I should be, that I ought not to engage in 
any thing so sacred. But if you were faint, 
would you therefore refuse the proffered cup ? 
If you were cold, would you therefore keep 
from the fire ? If you were sick, would you, 
for this reason, thrust from your lips the 
healing balm ? But if not, why reject in the 
case before you one of God's appointed 
sources of relief? Amid all your varied 
means of grace, there is no one so fully 
adapted to meet your wants as this commem- 
orative duty. 

And yet adds the third, I can not go to the 
communion ivith A B. But why ? Because 



224 the pastor's gift; or, 

he has so tried my feelings. But did you 
never try the feelings of a fellow church 
member, and much more so, those of Christ ? 
But you say that A B has done wrong. 
Admit it. And yet, if the eye refuses to 
see, shall the ear therefore refuse to hear? 
If our own brother offends us, shall we there- 
fore go and offend our common parent ? In 
other words, shall the errors of a church 
member cause us to offend against the church 
and against God ? 

But, adds a fourth still, I think the church 
has done wrong. But suppose it has, for 
there is no perfection here, will this justify 
you in going and committing another wrong ? 
As well suppose that you are released from 
your filial obligations, because your mother 
is not above all possible error. After the 
church has once received us into her fellow- 
ship and to her communion, it will be time 
enough for us to leave the one or the other, 
when she has so directed by her vote, when 
she has become corrupt beyond all hope of 
recovery, or when we have abjured our faith 
as Christians. If we have sinned ourselves, 
the sin (the sin-offering) lieth at our own 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 225 

door. Our duty is to repent, to obtain par- 
don from God, and, if need be, from our 
church, and then return to our own place 
and privileges. And this is something which 
we should do, not after weeks, months or 
years of cruel delay, but at once. It is an 
immediate duty, a duty which we owe to our- 
selves, to the church and to our God. If 
others err, it is their sin, and not ours. If 
they go to the communion unworthily, it is 
their responsibility, and not our excuse. We 
go to this scene, not to have our thoughts 
dwell upon the petty frailties of humanity, 
but to discharge a sacred obligation and re- 
fresh our own spirits. We go there not to 
remember the wrongs of our brethren, but 
the love of our Redeemer. " But let a man 
examine himself, and so let him eat of that 
bread and drink of that cup." There is an 
individual point here. There is a separate 
personal interest, and a personal responsibil- 
ity. We are to act for ourselves and not for 
others. An improper omission here is to our 
own loss. It is a high offense against Christ, 
and beware, reader, how you become guilty 
of it. 



226 the pastor's gift; or, 



CHAPTER VII. 

CHURCH DISCIPLINE. 



THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS DISCIPLINE. 

Of the duty of growing in the true knowl- 
edge and active graces of piety, we have 
spoken and shall speak in other places. In 
noticing church discipline, therefore, we shall 
confine ourselves simply to the proper treat- 
ment of the offending, where these are to be 
found. 

The positive duty of church discipline, en- 
forced in a few w T ords, we may learn from 
this •passage : " Now we command you, 
brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus 
Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from 
every brother that walketh disorderly, and 
not after the tradition which ye have receiv- 
ed of us." 

Observe, first, that this language is very 



OUTLINES OP CHRISTIAN DUTY. 227 

positive. It is a command given in the name 
of Christ. Secondly, it admits that the of- 
fender may be a brother, a true, though a 
misguided Christian, Thirdly, it allows of 
no respect of persons. Every brother who 
offends is to be called to an account for his 
conduct* Fourthly, if the offender perse- 
veres in his wrong, all church-fellowship with 
him is to be withdrawn. He is to be ex- 
cluded. 

From an epistle written prior to the one 
quoted from above, we learn that the mem- 
bers to be thus summarily dealt with, had 
been previously admonished. They had, how- 
ever, discarded the admonition, and conse- 
quently nothing remained but exclusion. Ob- 
serve the order of proceeding : Instruct, ad- 
monish, entreat ; but if this does not avail, 
then set aside. 

The right and the duty of church discip- 
line being thus established, its importance is 
urged from a regard to the good of the of- 
fender. u Thou shalt not hate thy brother 
in thine heart ; thou shalt in anywise rebuke 
thy neighbor, and not suffer sin upon him. — 
Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a faulty 



228 the pastor's gift; or, 



ye which are spiritual, restore such an one 
in the spirit of meekness. — He which con- 
verteth a sinner from the error of his way, 
shall save a soul from death and shall hide a 
multitude of sins." If the Christian errs 
and no one notices it, he may be led to mis- 
take the character of his conduct, become 
unconscious of his fault, hardened in it, or 
encouraged to proceed to different, and per- 
haps greater offenses still. On the other 
hand, if he is kindly admonished at first, 
this may lead to reflection, reflection to more 
correct views, and more correct views to re- 
pentance and reformation. Many an utter 
shipwreck of faith and Christian character 
might have been saved by the early, kind, and 
judicious admonition. There is a mighty 
power in the gentle and faithful persuasion 
of a friend. It awakens attention. It starts 
the omnipotence of conscience, and places a 
strong barrier before subsequent sin. Or al- 
low that it is different; or allow that the 
offender still goes on in his course till final 
and decisive action is required; even this 
final action will be a favor to him. It will 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 229 

administer a just rebuke. It will cause him 
to see in what light his conduct is viewed by- 
others, and if he is not utterly lost to all 
Christian feeling, it must check him in his 
wrong, if it does not bring him to repentance 
and to his former place in the church. "Let 
the righteous smite me ; it shall be a kind- 
ness ; and let him reprove me ; it shall be an 
excellent oil which shall not break my head. 
— He that reproveth a scorner, getteth him- 
self shame ; and he that rebuketh a wicked 
man, getteth himself a blot. — Reprove not 
a scorner, lest he hate thee ; rebuke a wise 
man and he will love thee." 

But the good of the church, as well as that 
of the offending member, requires this strict 
discipline. When an individual publicly pro- 
fesses religion, and unites with a given church, 
he is supposed to understand the duties which 
belong to that profession, and the ordinary 
discipline of that church, and, consequently, 
if he proves delinquent, he knows beforehand 
what he is to expect. And not only so, but 
having voluntarily entered into a solemn en- 
gagement with the church on uniting with it, 



20 



230 THE PASTOR* iS GiFtf, OB, 

if he subsequently violates that engagement, 
he receives no injustice in being called to an 
account. 

But while to deal with the offender is to 
do him no injustice, not to do so would be an 
injustice to the church. If he embraces 
views, essentially at variance with those for- 
merly acknowledged, he can not be consis- 
tently retained as a member. To thus re- 
tain would be for the church to cherish in her 
bosom that leaven of error, which might event* 
ually corrupt the whole body, and essentially 
change its character. If the member leaves 
the duties of his profession, he becomes dead 
to the church, and consequently burdensome. 
If he is guilty of immoral conduct, his entire 
influence becomes a blight and a curse. A 
greater mistake never need be made than to 
suppose that mere numbers can essentially 
benefit a church. Ten good members, united, 
faithful and true, will have more efficiency, 
and will exert a wider and more healthful 
influence, than twice, thrice, or even an 
hundred-fold that number, w T ho are divided 
in their views, estranged in their feelings, 
negligent of their obligations, or loose in 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 231 

their conduct. u One sinner destroyeth much 
good.'' One disorderly church member does 
much evil. His example may prove conta- 
gious and soon be followed by others. It 
blunts the edge of Gospel truth, and thus be- 
comes a hindrance to the unconverted, and 
repels from the church, and even from the 
congregation, the candid and conscientious. 
Load a church down, with worthless, or worse 
than worthless members, and you have par- 
alyzed its influence, destroyed its moral 
power, and paved the way for its ultimate 
ruin. 



ADEQUATE CAUSES OF CHURCH DISCIPLINE. 

Says the apostle, " If any man obey not 
our word by this epistle, note that man and 
have no company with him that he may be 
ashamed." Supposing this language to furn- 
ish the great principle of proceeding in this 
matter, we may say, in general terms, that 
any marked departure from the inspired 
Record is a requisite or adequate cause of dis- 
cipline. But to be more definite we may ar- 
range these causes into three classes ; viz.: 



232 the pastor's gift; or, 



immoral conduct, the neglect of covenant 
duties, and the adoption of false and danger- 
ous sentiments. 

The religion of Christ is one of purity. 
The church is " The light of the world." To 
allow, therefore, any thing like moral obliqui- 
ty in a church member, is to bring the whole 
subject of religion into reproach. Christ has 
become to us " The end of the law for justi- 
fication," but not for practice. He abates to 
his followers, nothing of the strictness of the 
Divine Law. On the other hand, he has set 
us the most perfect example of moral virtue, 
and has explained and enforced the moral 
code with new and more comprehensive strict- 
ness. If we would, therefore, claim to be 
disciples or followers of Christ, we must deny 
ourselves of " all ungodliness and worldly 
lust," and " live soberly and righteously in 
this present world." Even "the appear- 
ance" of evil is to be avoided. Any ap- 
proach to a violation of the Ten Command- 
ments; any irreverance or neglect of God; 
any profanity or Sabbath breaking ; any 
abuse of filial obligations; any personal 
violence to others ; any moral impurity ; 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 233 

any acquisition of property by unjustifiable 
means ; any false or abusive use of the 
tongue ; or any manifest covetousness, imper- 
atively demands church action. " Thou shalt 
fear the Lord thy God and serve Him. — 
Neither shalt thou profane the name of thy 
God. — Remember the Sabbath day to keep 
it holy. — But now I have written unto you, 
not to keep company, if any man that is 
called a brother, is a fornicator, or covetous, 
or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or 
an extortioner, with such an one no, not to 
eat. For what have I to do to judge them 
also who are without? Do not ye judge 
them that are within. But them that are 
without, God judgeth. Therefore put away 
from among you that wicked person." 

Next after immoral conduct, follows the 
neglect of covenant duties as a cause of 
church discipline. In another place (Chap- 
ter II.) , we have noticed the supposed 
obligations assumed on making a public pro- 
fession of religion, and in connecting our- 
selves with some individual church. In gen- 
eral, it is a public confession and acceptance 
of the Christian system, and a solemn pledge 
20 * 



234 the pastor/ s gift; or, 

to meet its obligations. In particular, it is 
an acknowledgement of the supposed cor- 
rectness of the sentiments, practice and dis- 
cipline of the -church, of which we become 
members, and a most solemn engagement to 
walk accordingly. To this end we enter into 
a most sacred agreement or covenant with 
the church. Any violations therefore of this 
agreement, an agreement into which we have 
voluntarily entered, and as an imperious 
duty ; any private conduct inconsistent with 
a commendable profession of religion — the 
visiting of improper places of amusement — 
the omission of family duties — continued 
absence from the ordinances and the meet- 
ings of the church — refusing to pay our pro- 
portion of the necessary expenses of the 
church, or withholding aid from the varied 
benevolent operations of the day, — justly 
exposes us to the discipline of the church, 
and fully demands that discipline. We have 
sinned against God ; we have offended against 
His people, and the duty of the church is 
plain and imperative. " Abstain from all 
appearance of evil — This do in remember- 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY, 235 

ance of me — not forsaking the assembling 
of yourselves together — Let him that is 
taught in the Word, communicate to him 
that teacheth in all good things — To do 
good and communicate, forget not." 

We fear that the making of a public pro- 
fession of religion is often done quite too 
thoughtlessly. That most solemn step is 
taken, not as an imperative duty ; not in full 
view of the sacred obligations involved, and 
with a fixed resolution to meet them ; but be- 
cause others take it ; because it is fashion- 
able at the time, or because the feelings at 
the moment so incline. Christians enter into 
the most sacred engagement with God and 
with their fellows, and yet allow its fulfill- 
ment to be a mere matter of indifference, 
convenience, or pleasure. The bare thought 
of such a course should make one shudder. 
It is a vain trifling with holy things. It is 
as offering unhallowed fire before God. 
Reader, have you made, or are you about 
to make, a public acknowledgement of Christ, 
and assume the duties of a church member ? 
Then endeavor to realize the importance of 



236 the pastor's gift; or ; 



this step. Keep constantly before you the 
fact that the vows of Heaven are upon you, 
and that you can not and must not go back. 

But following a dereliction in Christian 
and church duties, heresy furnishes a requi- 
site cause for discipline. By heresy is un- 
derstood a w T ide departure from the acknowl- 
edged sentiments of the church. Says the 
apostle, "Now I beseech you, brethren, mark 
them which cause divisions, and offenses, 
contrary to the doctrine which you have 
learned, and avoid them. — A man that is an 
heretic, after the first and second admoni- 
tions, reject, knowing that he that is such is 
subverted and sinneth, being condemned of 
himself. — But though we or an angel from 
heaven, preach any other gospel unto you 
than that which we have preached unto you, 
let him be accursed." Fuller and more pos- 
itive language can not be had. The one who 
causes division is to be marked and avoided; 
the heretic is to be rejected ; and even if an 
angel, seen descending directly from heaven, 
preach any other gospel than that of the apos- 
tle, he is to be at once and decidedly con- 
demned. It is of no consequence what a 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 237 

man is, seems to be, or pretends to be ; if he 
preaches false doctrine, or indulges in false 
practices ; if he strikes against the acknowl- 
edged truths of the New Testament, and 
against the established sentiments of his own 
church, he can not consistently be longer 
held a member of that church. To retain 
him under such circumstances, would be like 
retaining in our partnership in business one 
who would only labor to defeat or to destroy 
whatever we attempted to do. It would be 
folly for the business man to do this. And 
not greater folly would it be for the church, 
to retain in its fellowship a member who is 
constantly fighting against its interest. Such 
a person has no just claim to our religious 
intimacy, or to our church-fellowship. We 
well know that proper action in such a case 
may call forth the accusation of bigotry or 
persecution. The charge, however, is per- 
fectly groundless, or if there is persecution, 
it is on the part of the rejected, rather than 
on that of the rejectors. You talk of indi- 
vidual rights. But churches have their rights 
as well as the individual, and the rights of 
the many can not be less than those of the 



238 the pastor's gift; or, 

individual, nor are they to be wantonly tram- 
pled upon by the caprice of the individual. 
No consistent man will at first unite with a 
church whose sentiments and observances he 
does not cordially fellowship. And having 
once honestly united with such a church, and 
having seen occasion, subsequently, to change 
the essential principles of his belief, his mem- 
bership ceases to be a duty or privilege, and 
his only consistent course is to withdraw. 
But if in the room of doing this, he persists 
in retaining his church standing, and per- 
haps avails himself of it to injure the church, 
or to propagate his own new and obnoxious 
principles, his course is unjustifiable in the 
extreme. By so doing, he acts, not in de- 
fense of his own rights, but in the gross vio- 
lation of those of others. Every sense of 
propriety and every principle of kindness 
forbids his course. By such conduct, the 
privileges of the church are violated, and her 
righteous remedy is in the excision of the 
offending member, and to do this she is bound 
by a just regard to her own interest, the wel- 
fare of religion and the positive law of Christ. 
It may not always be easy to say when a 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 239 

member has departed sufficiently far from the 
supposed true faith to require extreme meas- 
ures. Much may be borne with ; much may 
be overlooked. There can be no doubt, how- 
ever, when one has adopted sentiments an- 
tagonistic to those at first embraced, has 
united with some other church, or is throw- 
ing his whole strength and influence against 
his own. In all such cases, the sooner, and 
with the more efficiency action is taken, the 
more judicious and the better will it be. 

We have spoken of heresy, properly so 
considered. Another cause of church discip- 
line sometimes occurs, which is in character 
and consequences similar to this, and may 
therefore be properly classed with it. This 
cause, for the want of a more appropriate 
term, we will call factiousness. It is the 
part acted by sectional leaders, those who 
are " self-willed — heady — high-minded " — 
the natural descendants of Diotrephes, who 
of old loved to have "the pre-eminence. " 
Yield to these, or ever allow them to lead, ju- 
diciously or otherwise, right or wrong, and 
all will be well. Differ from them, or oppose 
their wishes, and trouble is certain. They 



240 the pastor's gift; or, 

must have their own way, or there can be no 
way. If the whole church, pastor and all, 
can not be made to follow their lead, they 
will split off a fragment, whine and whimper, 
and, if possible, frustrate the efforts of the 
main body. Thus many a church is headed 
in every honorable movement, or hurried on, 
perhaps, to utter extermination. In the just 
decision of the apostle, such members should 
be marked, and if entreaty and expostulation 
will not avail, something more severe should. 
No one member has a just claim to his own 
constant choice, any more than has every 
other member; and no one has a right to 
lord it over. his brethren to their grief and to 
the injury of the cause. If a man is truly 
wise and prudent, he need have no fear but 
his counsel will be duly sought and his judg- 
ment fully prized. On the other hand, if his 
chief and only claim to distinction, is an in- 
domitable self-will, intolerable vanity, or de- 
structive rashness, there is no sense, reason, 
or justice in allowing him to rule to the man- 
ifest injury of all concerned. If he will not 
learn better or do better, let him be sent 
where there is no one to trouble him, and no 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 241 

one for him to trouble except those who love 
his dictation. 

METHOD OF PROCEEDING IN CHURCH DISCIPLINE. 

In the foregoing Section, we have divided 
the causes of discipline into three classes,, 
In this we arrange them under two only, viz., 
personal offenses and public offenses. By 
personal offenses, we mean those which are 
against some one individual, and give him a 
just cause of complaint. By public offenses, 
we mean those which are against the church 
as a body, or against religion as a whole. If 
one member misuses another, it is a personal 
offense. If he neglects the duties of his pro- 
fession, or becomes guilty of open immorality, 
the offense is public 

In ordinary cases of the first class, or per- 
sonal offenses, our Saviour has given us the 
needed and positive direction. It is this : 
" If thy brother trespasses against thee, go 
and tell him his fault between thee and him 
alone. If he shall hear thee, thou hast 
gained thy brother. But if he will not hear 
thee, then take with thee one or two more, 
21 



242 the pastor's gift; or, 



that in the mouth of two or three witnesses? 
every word may be established. And if he 
shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the 
church ; but if he neglect to hear the church, 
let him be unto thee as an heathen man and 
a publican. " 

In this direction observe, a, that an offense 
must be committed ; there must be some in- 
fraction of individual or personal rights, and 
an instance in which the one complained of 
is alone to blame, and not one in which the 
complainer is equally or the more guilty. In 
the latter case, the church may call both to 
an account, but it would seem quite anoma- 
lous for one to be seen with " a beam in his 
own eye," attempting to " cast the mote out 
of his brother's eye." 

b. When this private offense is received^ 
we are to go and tell it, not to some other 
one, not to the church, and much less to the 
world without ; we are to go and tell it first 
to the offending brother himself. If he hears 
us, manifests the proper spirit, and gives us 
all reasonable satisfaction, here the whole 
question is to end. " Thou hast gained thy 
brother." 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 243 

c. If the offender will not hear us private- 
ly, then we are to take with us "one or two 
more," and with them go to him again. The 
object of this may be twofold ; viz.: that these 
attending members may join their efforts with 
ours to secure a proper adjustment of the 
difficulty, or failing in this, may be witness 
in our behalf, 

d. If this second effort proves fruitless, 
and those who have acted with us believe 
we have just cause of complaint, we are then 
to go to the church, 

e. The case having gone to the church, our 
individual responsibility ceases, and the whole 
subject becomes the business of the church. 
If its judgment is against us, we should sub- 
mit. If it is against the accused and he re- 
fuses to yield, then, after due forbearance 
and effort, nothing remains but the extreme 
remedy — exclusion. 

Here, then, for all private or personal of- 
fenses, we have a specific and a sufficient 
rule. If it should always be followed, what 
mountains of hard thoughts — what oceans 
of bitter speeches — what worlds of difficul- 
ty would be saved. Be it remembered, that 



244 the pastor's giet; oh ; 

we are not to make known our personal diffi- 
culties with a brother or sister to others (ex- 
cept possibly for advice), 4ill we have gone 
to the one offending, and sought a private 
explanation or satisfaction. If we do this 
we violate an express law of Christ, and 
however much and just cause we may have 
for complaint, we are ourselves liable to, and 
deserving of the notice and the action of the 
church. 

But to pass to public offenses ; some sup- 
pose that the instructions, already iloticed, 
are to apply to these also. They undoubt- 
edly do in spirit, but we think not in letter. 
The language in Matthew is, " If thy brother 
tresspass against thee. 91 But common dis- 
honesty, profanity, intemperance, irreligious 
conduct, a neglect of church duties, or heresy, 
is no more an offense against one member of 
the church, than against another and every 
member. It is against the Christian religion 
itself, and against the entire church to which 
the offending member belongs. It seems the 
more appropriate, therefore, that the church 
itself should act. And further ; the church 
as a body could act with more hope of sue- 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 245 

cess than an individual member. The offend- 
er might boldly confront the individual and 
accuse him of unauthorized intermedling. 
But should he see the whole church grieved 
with his conduct and taking part against him, 
he must be far gone in sin or error, not to 
be checked in his course or even reformed. 

Our judgment, therefore, is that public 
offenses should be treated 'publicly. They 
should come under the notice and the deci- 
sion of the church itself. In such cases, 
however, the church is to pursue, substantial- 
ly, the same course as that marked out for 
the individual. As a knowledge of the ab- 
erration or delinquency comes before them, 
they are to appoint their committee to visit 
the accused, and, if necessary, investigate the 
subject of complaint. If he acknowledges 
the charge and is willing to make the desired 
confession and reparation, let him do this, 
and here let the matter rest. If he denies 
the accusation, and no sufficient proof of its 
truth can be found, nothing further can be 
done or should be attempted. If he denies 
its truth, while the ample proof is at hand, 
or if he admits its correctness and yet justi- 
21* 



246 the pastor's gift; or, 

fies his course, and declares his intention to 
persist in it, nothing remains for the church, 
but to hear and so decide. It may not al- 
ways be desirable to exclude at once, but if 
admonition and entreaty do not avail, excision 
must follow. 

The question may here be asked, whose 
duty it is to bring public offenses before the 
church ? Our reply is, that of any one who is 
knowing to them, or is sensible of the impor- 
tance of their being noticed. Often, per- 
haps, the facts in the case are known to one 
or two only, and if so, it is their work, and 
theirs emphatically, to bring it before the 
church, or if not to the church, to the notice 
of some of the older and more experienced 
members. As a general rule, however, we 
suppose the officers of the church are to have 
an eye on these matters, and when an offense 
is committed which is worthy of attention, 
are to bring it forward or see that it is done 
by those more fully conversant with it. Not 
unfrequently churehes have a standing or 
annual committee, whose special business is 
to look after this whole subject, and present 
before the church any and all instances of 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 247 

omission or commission, which seem to re- 
quire its notice. Such a committee is always 
desirable, and especially so in larger churches. 
What we have now said, covers, as we sup- 
pose, with one exception, the proper course of 
proceeding in all cases of church discipline 
whatever. The exception is where the offense 
is gross, and requires extreme measures, with- 
out labor or delay, beyond the ascertaining 
of necessary facts. If a member becomes 
guilty of adultery, theft or other flagrant sins, 
the honor of religion and of every thing good, 
imperiously demands immediate excision. The 
time may come in which the offender may be 
restored, but this can not be till after the 
most undoubted and ample fruits of repent- 
ance. His offense has been great; he has 
most severely wounded the cause of Christ, 
and he has no right to claim or to expect 
that leniency or forbearance which could be 
justly yielded under other circumstances. 
He has gone far out of the way, and the 
church would be wanting in self-respect, re- 
miss in duty and unworthy the confidence of 
the community, if its notice of the offense 
was not speedy and decisive. 



248 the pastor's gift; or, 

To what we have now said, we append a 
few important practical observations. 

a. There is no time in which we need more 
of the genuine spirit of piety, than when we 
are engaged in matters of church discipline. 
Whether we are ourselves the subjects of it, 
or are taking part in it, we can not be too 
careful of the feelings which we cherish. If 
we are the accused, how important that we 
receive that accusation in the spirit of meek- 
ness, and if we are reluctantly compelled to 
use the scalpel in regard to a fellow-member, 
how important that we do it in such a man- 
ner, as will cause the least pain, make the 
smallest wound, and have the wound heal 
at the earliest possible day. 

b. No individual or committee should ar- 
raign a member before the church, without 
some adequate and tangible proof of his guilt. 
Neither should we bring a charge on our own 
individual testimony, unless the accused ac- 
knowledges its truth. While we are both 
members of the church in good and equal 
standing, his denial would be equivalent to 
our affirmation. And further; if we can 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 24% 

produce no other proof than that of our own 
word, he, if so disposed, can shift the ques- 
tion, and bring against us the charge of false 
or malicious accusation. In such a case the 
church must necessarily decide against us, 
however true or false may have been our tes- 
timony. " One witness shall not rise up 
against a man for any iniquity, or for any 
sin, in any sin that he sinneth ; at the mouth 
of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three 
witnesses, shall the matter be established." 
" Go not forth hastily to strive, lest thou 
know not what to do in the end thereof, when 
thy neighbor hath put thee to shame/' But 
you may ask what you shall do, when you 
yourself know that a member has been far 
out of the way, and yet you have no proof 
of it, beyond your own naked assertion ? We 
reply that you must do the only thing which 
can be done, without making hopeless trouble 
for yourself and others. This is to bear your 
knowledge as a burden till other facts are 
developed, which will help you establish the 
offender's guilt. We state this as a general 
rule. There may be possible exceptions, and 



250 



the pastor's gift; or. 



especially so in some peculiar case in which 
the oath of the aggrieved would be all the 
civil law demands. 

c. Except in those cases of gross immoral- 
ity which require immediate and decided 
action, and in which the evidence is clear 
and full, no member should be condemned till 
he has had, if he wishes, an opportunity of 
self-defense. " Doth our law judge any 
man before it hear him and know what he 
doeth?" 

d. It is desirable that all cases of simple 
misunderstanding, or difference in judgment, 
should be submitted to mutual referees, rather 
than be carried to the church. Instances of 
this character often occur in which there is 
no wrong intended on either side. If they 
do, and we are parties in the question, we 
very naturally suppose ourselves to be in the 
right. But who does not know that no indi- 
vidual is himself an impartial judge in his 
own case ? But if this is the fact, we should 
ever be willing to submit our interested judg- 
ment to the uninterested judgment of others. 
Indeed, any church member who would not 
do this, but too clearly shows himself to be 



OUTLINES OJF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 251 

conceited, self-willed, or that he distrusts the 
righteousness of his own cause. 

Our reasons for thus referring questions 
of this character are, first, if each of the 
parties concerned is anxious to do right, and 
can thus settle their difficulty, it is not a 
proper matter for church action, and fur- 
nishes no occasion for it. Secondly, this 
mode of disposing of the subject will cause 
much less talk and much less trouble than it 
would to carry it before the church; and 
thirdly, in all questions of this kind, the 
judgment of a select committee would be 
preferable to that of a promiscuous church, 
while to throw such questions before the 
church might create discord, and cause a 
long train of evils. 

It may be said, in objection, that both par- 
ties might not be satisfied with the decision 
of such a committee. But if they would not 
be satisfied with this, would they be satisfied 
with the decision of the church? And if 
not, is it not almost certain that the dissatis- 
fied are wrong in spirit, if not in the whole 
question ? If, however, one or both the par- 
ties are unyielding, and no other satisfactory 



252 the pastor's giet; or, 

decision can he had, the question must go to 
the church, whatever be the consequences. 
But we would most earnestly dissuade each 
and every brother from taking this course. 
Do not be guilty of causing so much unnec- 
essary talk, of arousing so much needless 
hard feeling, and of making so much un- 
called-for labor and trouble. Do not do this, 
unless the case is one of great importance, 
and the one with whom you have to do, ut- 
terly refuses to come to any other settlement. 
No, nor even then, unless you are urged to it 
by the honor of religion. You had better 
bear much, than do worse. In cases in which 
we are personally interested, feeling is quite 
too apt to blind our eyes, or to lead us far 
out of the way. All that we should ever ask 
for, is simply right or justice, and when we 
have this, in the estimation of the impartial 
and judicious, we should be satisfied, though 
the decision may have been different from 
what we could have wished. To allow a few 
dollars in money, a trifling variation in judg- 
ment, a small error of the memory, or a few 
hasty words spoken under momentary excite- 
ment, to break our friendship, to kindle a 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 253 

quenchless flame of passion, and to carry 
labor, discord, and perhaps ruin into a 
church, is any thing but Christianlike, gene- 
rous or noble. The person who would do 
this, betrays a waspish or miserly disposition 
and sinks himself deep in the estimation of 
every virtuous member of the community. 
" Dare any of you, having a matter against 
another, go to law before the unjust, and not 
before the saints ? Do ye not know that the 
saints shall judge the world? And if the 
world shall be judged by you, are ye unwor- 
thy to judge the smallest matters? Know 
ye not that we shall judge angels ? How 
much more things that pertain to this life ? 
If then ye have judgment of things pertain- 
ing to this life, set them to judge who are 
least esteemed in the church. * * * * What ! 
Know ye not that your body is the temple of 
the Holy Ghost which is in you ; which ye 
have of God, and ye are not your own ? For 
ye are bought with a price ; therefore glorify 
God in your body and in your spirit, which 
are God's." 

e. But sometimes members are excluded, 
jffoiv should such be treated ? Paul answers, 
22 



2hi THE pastor's gift; or, 

"Yet count him not as an enemy, but ad- 
monish him as a brother." Something should, 
doubtless, depend on the character of the of- 
fense which has occasioned the action, and 
something on the subsequent conduct of the 
offender. No treatment, however, should be 
allowed but that of kindness, and so far and 
so long as there is encouragement to hope, 
no labor should be spared to bring the of- 
fender to due repentance and acknowledg- 
ment, and to a restoration to his former stand- 
ing in the church. " So that contrariwise, 
ye ought rather to forgive him and comfort 
him, lest perhaps such an one should be swal- 
lowed up with over-much sorrow. Wherefore 
I beseech you that you would confirm your 
love toward him." 

/. But members are not only excluded, but 
are sometimes excluded unjustly, and per- 
haps on false testimony. A case of this 
character is truly painful to the injured 
brother. But allowing this, a natural and 
important question here arises. It is this : 
What is the proper course for the injured to 
pursue ? In reply we say, what is proper 
and what is done, are often quite different. 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 255 

More frequently offense is taken; the ag- 
grieved tears himself wholly from the church, 
and throws his entire influence and strength 
against it. This is the impulse of our cor- 
rupt nature, but not of a truly renewed 
spirit. If your father's family, or some 
member of it, had erred in respect to your- 
self, would you therefore become the open 
and active enemy of that father or family ? 
No ; your sense of justice and honor, and all 
the natural feelings of son and brother, rise 
against such a course. But is it more be- 
coming or correct for you to be offended with 
the mistaken judgment of your church, or of 
some one member of it, and therefore become 
the enemy and the opposer of that church ? 
Certainly not. And far is this from the 
Gospel rule of rendering good for evil, or of 
overcoming evil with good. Rather still con- 
tinue to meet with the church ; speak well 
of its intentions, and do as formerly for its 
support. This course, though uncongenial 
to our depraved natures, is in accordance 
with the spirit taught in the Gospel. It is 
the most conducive also to our own reputa- 
tion as Christians, and the surest way to 



256 the pastor's gift; or, 



bring the church to see and acknowledge its 
error, and, as far as possible, repair the in- 
jury done. There may be instances in which 
it is desirable to ask for a mutual council, or 
if this is denied, for one ex parte in its char- 
acter. And especially so, if we are about to 
change our place of residence. But in the 
great majority of cases, it would be better to 
submit quietly, and wait in humble prayer 
and Christian forbearance, until the truth 
shall come to light, and a full measure of 
justice be meted out to us. This, undoubt- 
edly, will be done at last, and when it is 
done, our former injustice will serve to ele- 
vate us, rather than depress, in the estima- 
tion of the community. 



WHO IS TO SUSTAIN THIS CHURCH DISCIPLINE. 

We have already endeavored to show the 
importance of this discipline, and the proper 
mode of conducting it. But if this duty is 
to be performed, who are to be the actors ? 
Obviously not the pastor exclusively, &or the 
officers of the church. This would be to 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 257 

make the church the mere creature of the 
few, existing and acting for their good or 
pleasure, and not for its own. But we have 
no such views. A Christian church is an in- 
dependent body. It is self-moving and self- 
directing in its organization. It is self-gov- 
erning in its character. It is her duty 
therefore to protect each member from any 
injustice from other members. And it is her 
right alone to mark out and regulate the 
conduct of those who claim affinity with her. 
In other words, the discipline of the church 
is a work which belongs exclusively to that 
church. But who or what is a church except 
its different members united ? And what 
part or duty has one member more than an- 
other ? We know of none, except what dif- 
ference of position and greater capacities 
give. We infer, therefore, that each mem- 
ber has a part to act in matters of discipline. 
Inasmuch as each help compose the whole ? 
each is to help do the work of the whole, be 
that work pleasant or otherwise. "For as 
the body is one and has many members, and 
all the. members of that one body, being 
inany, are one body ; so also is Christ. 
22* 



258 



the pastor's gift; or, 



* * * If the f 00 £ shall sa ,y because I am 
the hand, I am not of the body, is it there- 
fore not of the body ? and if the ear shall 
say, because I am not the eye, I am not of 
the body ; is it therefore not of the body ? 

* * * And whether one member suffers, 
all the members suffer with it ; or one mem- 
ber be honored, all the members rejoice with 
it. Now ye are the body of Christ and 
members in particular/' As the eye has no 
more interest in the body than the hand ; 
and as the right hand has no more than the 
left, or than each and every other member, 
so in the church. Each member has a com- 
mon interest in the whole body, and in each 
other member. Except there is something 
peculiar in the relation sustained to the ac- 
cused, one member can be relieved of the 
business of discipline as well as another, and 
if A excuses himself, so may B and C and 
every other one, and thus the work of disci- 
pline be wholly neglected, the cause of re- 
ligion left to suffer, or the whole church to 
come to naught. For one to unite with the 
church and then shrink from the obligation 
which that union imposes, or to endeavor to 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 259 

avoid its unpleasant duties, is like enlisting 
as a soldier and then always contriving to 
be absent in seasons of fatigue, or in time of 
battle. But who would be such a soldier? 
And who would be that Christian who would 
wish to share equally in all the honors, advan- 
tages and privileges of church membership, 
and then endeavor to avoid whatever is of an 
unpleasant or responsible character? And 
by taking this course, can any one suppose 
that he avoids responsibility ? The reverse 
of this is true. The member who neglects 
the business meetings of the church, has no 
credit for any good done, while he is respon- 
sible for any wrong which his counsel or vote 
might have prevented. And further; to 
have a full meeting when business is trans- 
acted, and especially so when members are 
to be dealt with, gives the very necessary 
and salutary influence. If there are but a 
few present, the disciplined may suppose that 
the others are in his favor, and hence be 
emboldened to oppose, or he may take advan- 
tage of this fact and use it to the injury of 
the church. On the other hand, if there is 
a full meeting, and a full vote, this will serve 



260 the pastor's gift; or, 

to carry conviction to the mind of the ac- 
cused, or act as a shield against any attack 
which he may be disposed to make. And 
bo, if a member is accused wrongfully, a full 
vote of acquittal is his right. It is w T hat 
we would have, if the case w T ere ours, and 
it is what justice to the w T ronged and the 
cause of religion requires. The decision of 
the few may be weak, but that of the many 
is strong. 

In business of discipline then, each mem- 
ber should have the firm conviction that he 
is to bear his own full proportion of respon- 
sibility. To assist him in meeting this re- 
sponsibility, let us state a few particulars. 

a. If to our knowledge we have given of- 
fense to a brother, either with or without 
cause, we should at once go to him, and seek 
a full explanation and reconciliation. If we 
have given him just occasion for grief, this 
should be taken away ; or if he is laboring 
under misapprehension, we should endeavor 
to remove it. Often a mere word of expla- 
nation at first, will save a world of future 
trouble. " Therefore if thou bring thy gift 
to the altar and there remembereth that thy 



OUTLINES 



OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 



261 



brother hath aught against thee, leave there 
thy gift before the altar, and go thy way ; 
first be reconciled to thy brother, and then 
come and offer thy gift." 

b. If a member gives us just occasion to 
notice his conduct, we should at once pur- 
sue with him, the course directed by our 
Saviour.* 

c. If we know of any real or reported of- 
fense against any member, which justly calls 
for church action, we should bring it before 
the church, either ourselves, or through its 
officers. 

d. At all business meetings of the church, 
we should be present, if possible, and prompt- 
ly take any and every part which justly be- 
longs to us. We have known members to 
absent themselves with the express design of 
avoiding an unpleasant duty, or of escaping 
responsibility. Such a course is unworthy 
of the Christian profession, and is most cul- 
pable, 46 Should such a man as I flee?" 
Shall the Christian conceal himself in dark- 
ness, when duty calls him out to light ? 

* See Matt. 18; and Chap. VII. 



262 



the pastor's gift; or, 



CHAPTEE VIII. 

PERSEVERANCE. 



WHAT WE MEAN BY PERSEVERANCE. 

Our remarks upon this point are not theo- 
retical but practical. We therefore mean by 
perseverance, a steady, unvarying and con- 
tinued course in cherishing the spirit and per- 
forming the duties of the Christian. 

In the commencement of our religious life 
our conduct was true and consistent. Our 
spirit was affectionate, humble, meek, quiet, 
forbearing and forgiving. We were punctual 
in our private devotions. In our intercourse 
with others, our conduct was upright and 
blameless. Our disposition was that of obe- 
dience, and we were anxious to know our 
whole duty and to perform it. If we were 
in doubt upon any given point, we at once 
turned to the Scriptures for aid, or sought it 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 263 



from other appropriate sources. The thought 
of omitting any duty, or of swerving from it, 
was not cherished for a moment. Now what 
we mean by perseverance, is the carrying out 
through life that course of feeling and con- 
duct thus happily begun. "As ye have 
therefore received Christ Jesus, the Lord, so 
walk ye in Him ; rooted and built up in 
Him, and established in the faith, as ye have 
been taught, abounding therein with thanks- 
giving." 

First of all we should maintain that pecu- 
liarly affectionate and lovely disposition, which 
was ours immediately after our conversion. 
How perfectly conscientious we then were. 
How afraid of sin, how kind, how careful 
to be consistent, and how anxious to do 
good. But as we advance in life, various in- 
fluences combine to chill this lovely feeling, 
to suppress it, to crush it, or to drive it from 
our bosoms. But success here should never 
be allowed. The spirit of which we are 
speaking is sacred, and should be fully and 
fondly cherished. And it should not only be 
preserved inviolate, but constantly increased. 
It was this which made John so much beloved 



264 the pastor's gift; or, 

of the Saviour. This is the pure robe of 
Christian character. It is but the mirrored 
image of our Redeemer, and it should be 
kept pure and spotless, till it receives a new 
and higher character among the blest above. 

But in immediate connection with cherish- 
ing this early and amiable spirit, is the con- 
slant maintenance of 'proper habits of private 
devotion. It was early said of Paul, " Be- 
hold, he prayeth." Yes, Paul prayed. He 
prayed in secret. For him to do this was the 
natural impulse of that great change which 
had been wrought within. And the fact that 
he did pray was to be to Ananias the unques- 
tioned proof of his true regeneration. And 
so it is in every instance of the same inward 
change. The new-born Christian will pray. 
The exercise is a voluntary one. It is the 
free out-breathing of the renewed soul, and 
to find one professing recent conversion, and 
at the same time find him living without 
prayer, would be to find an empty, rattling 
shell. The fact that he was thus remiss 
would destroy all confidence in the genuine- 
ness of his piety. Now as private devotion — 
the reading of the Scriptures, meditation and 



OUTLINES OE CHRISTIAN DUTY. 



265 



prayer— were the elements of our early Chris- 
tian life, so it should always continue to be. 
And that it may so continue, we should early 
form our habits of private devotions,* and 
when once formed, these habits should never 
be relinquished. Circumstances may require 
a change of time or place, but never an 
abandonment. " Now, when Daniel knew 
that the writings w T ere signed, he went into 
his house, and his windows being open in his 
chamber towards Jerusalem, he kneeled upon 
his knees three times a day, and prayed and 
gave thanks before his God, as he did afore- 
time." The example of the prophet here is 
worthy of all consideration and imitation. 
With him the threats of envious princes and 
the den of angry lions had no power to deter. 
So it should be with every servant of God. 
If we neglect our private devotions, no one 
can tell where this dangerous neglect may 
lead us. It is opening the door for all good 
to pass out, and untold evils to enter. 

But we should persevere in the public du- 
ties of religion, as well as in those which are 
private. Did we at first erect our family 
* See Chap. III. 

23 



266 the pastor's gift; or ; 



altar and daily lay upon it our morning and 
evening sacrifice ? So it should be to the 
end. Did we love and attend the prayer 
meeting ? Our interest and consistency here 
should never be lost. Were we punctual in 
our attendance on the public means of grace ? 
We should never be less so, Were we free 
in the support of the Gospel, or in the aid 
of benevolent enterprises ? We should never 
become otherwise. Were we anxious to pre- 
serve a pure and consistent religious deport- 
ment, and to adorn the Christian name ? We 
should only become more and more so, even 
unto the end of life. 

In a word, in all things, in all places, un 
der all circumstances, and through all our 
lives, we should endeavor to be the mild ? 
humble, devoted and consistent Christian. 
Religion is not a mere day-dream* it is not 
a work of the fancy — an indefinite some- 
thing which comes and goes like light and 
shade. It is not an occasional outer gar- 
ment—a thing which is to adapt itself to 
attending circumstances — company, time or 
place. It is a reality. It possesses both 
spirit and form. It is enduring and is de- 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 267 

signed to be our daily and hourly attendant. 
It is to stamp its own lovely impress on all 
we do. It is to be the guardian angel of our 
thoughts. We are to go to no place to which 
she can not attend us without reproach. We 
are never to do aught, over which she can 
not preside without losing her dignity. And 
this is to be, not for a short time, nor for a 
long time, but till time w r ith us is no more. 
" Ye did run well ; who did hinder you that 
you should not obey the truth ? " Our first 
surrender before God and to God was entire. 
" And this they did ; not as we hoped, but 
first gave their own selves unto the Lord and 
unto us by the will of God." We did not 
unite with the church for a few months, or 
while the current religious interest continued. 
It was for life. We pledged ourselves to 
God and His service, till He should remove 
us from the service performed here to His 
higher service above. Shall we then subse- 
quently break our vow ? Shall we hold back 
from duty ? Shall we shrink from the cross ? 
Sooner let our "right hand forget her cun- 
ning," and our " Tongue cleave to the roof 
of [our] mouth." 



268 the pastor's gift; or, 



THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS PERSEVERANCE. 

This may be seen from different considera- 
tions. In the first place, it is required by a 
just regard to the honor of religion. An af- 
fectionate husband considers his own reputa- 
tion affected by whatever can affect that of 
his companion. So it should be in the case 
before us. The Christian professes the strong- 
est attachment to his religion, and this at- 
tachment should make him equally careful 
of its reputation. He should be especially 
unwilling that it should suffer through this 
means. But does it not thus suffer when its 
professed friends halt or stumble by the way, 
or when their own neglect proves their want 
of interest in it? Most certainly so. Un- 
believers look at this cause through the ex- 
ample of those who embrace it, and they will 
see its true character and its value, just in 
proportion to the transparency of that ex- 
ample. If this is pure, religion will be high- 
ly esteemed. If otherwise, it will suffer loss. 
But would you, reader, have religion abased 
through your agency? Would you be a 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 269 

stumbling-block in the way of others ? Would 
you. bring reproach on that name on which 
you rest your entire hopes ? If not, then 
persevere even unto the end. Give no occa- 
sion of offense unto others. Furnish them 
not with a shadow of excuse for saying, that 
you have lost your religion — that you do no 
more than others — or that your pretensions 
are vain. 

But not only a just regard to the honor of 
religion, but a regard to our own safety urges 
to this perseverance. We mean our safety 
as Christians. We are in a world of temp- 
tations, and are ever encircled by those ad- 
verse influences which are chilling to our 
pious emotions and enticing us away from 
Christ. We therefore have need of a coun- 
teracting power — such a power as can only 
be found in the path of duty. If we yield 
to temptations, we are at once overcome. If 
we " resist" them, they will "flee" from us. 
While we firmly face the foe, we are safe ; 
if we turn to him our back, our power of re- 
sistance is gone. If we keep the " testimony" 
of Christ, our assurance is that He will " keep" 
us in the hour of trial. 
23* 



270 



the pastor's gift; or ; 



But the Christian is not only to retain his 
early state or degree of piety, but is to " grow 
in grace" and hence we see the further im- 
portance of perseverance. Without this we 
can not reach that high point of excellence, 
consistency and enjoyment, which is so fully 
set before us in the New Testament. Our 
piety is not to be stationary, and much less, 
retrograde. It is to be progressive. We are 
at first but " babes in Christ/' and from this 
our religious infancy, we are to advance to 
manhood — " Unto the measure of the stature 
of the fullness in Christ." We are to in- 
crease in all divine knowledge and virtue. 
The longer we live, the more should we be- 
come like Christ, and the more fully pre- 
pared for heaven. But nothing is more cer- 
tain than that this can not be, while we are 
living in inactivity and neglect. It is the 
performance of duty that gives the proper 
elasticity and vigor of soul. It is in wait- 
ing on God that our strength is to be renew- 
ed. Leaving those things which are behind, 
we are to press "forward unto those which 
are before," If we would reach Pisgah's 
top, we must climb, climb gradually, climb 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 271 

perseveringly, and as we advance, we must, 
with "all diligence," add to our " faith vir- 
tue ; and to virtue knowledge ; and to knowl- 
edge temperance ; and to temperance pa- 
tience ; and to patience godliness ; and to 
godliness brotherly kindness ; and to broth- 
erly kindness charity. For if these things 
be in you and abound, they make you that 
ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in 
the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." 

But to look still further, our usefulness 
requires this perseverance. Every Chris- 
tian should be anxious to leave the world 
happier and better than he found it. But 
if we would do this, we must be consistent 
with our profession, and constant in our ef- 
forts. If we are all zeal at one time and 
none at another, this will mar our propriety 
of conduct, shear us of our strength, and 
render comparatively null our transcient ef- 
forts. It is character which gives force to 
words. And it is constancy which is to render 
our labors available. No one looks to the 
wind-vane to know which way to go. It is to 
the guide-board. The sudden dash of the tor- 
rent may leave no perceptible impression, 



272 



the pastor's gift; or, 



while the "continual dropping'' will wear 
away "the stone." It is the ever consistent 
and ever laboring man who will accomplish 
great ends. 

And yet there is another consideration in 
favor of this perseverance. It is the express 
requirement of Grodo Other reasons are im- 
portant, and should have an impelling influ- 
ence, but this is clothed with authority. We 
may not dare for a moment disregard it. 
"No man having put his hand to the plow, 
and looking back is fit for the Kingdom of 
God. — Be thou faithful unto death, and I 
will give thee a crown of life." Such is the 
Divine warning, and such is the authoritative 
injunction. Every man is the creature of 
God. If he is a Christian, he is redeemed 
by the blood of Christ, and to love Christ 
" with all his heart," — to present the body "a 
living sacrifice " — "to deny " himself, "take 
up" his "cross" and perseveringly follow 
duty, is but a reasonable demand. This de- 
mand the Bible makes of us, and there is no 
point at which the Christian can stay in his 
course, or quietly rest from his labors, tiP he 
stays and rests in heaven. 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 273 



MOTIVES TO PERSEVERANCE. 

The fact that this perseverance is a duty, 
ought to be sufficient to secure it. To a high- 
minded man — to the Christian, a conscious- 
ness of a just obligation should be all that is 
necessary to prompt and energetic action. 
But frail as we are, met by obstacles at every 
step and drawn aside by so many and mighty 
influences, motives to perseverance become 
desirable, if not even essential. These may 
be found in different considerations. 

Among these may be named, first, our love 
of consistency. A uniform and scarless char- 
acter is justly termed "a jewel." It is a 
jewel, too, of superior excellence and one 
rarely found. And yet it is one which every 
man wishes to possess as his own. But how 
can we have this jewel of character, while 
we say one thing and do another ? We pro- 
fess to be traveling towards heaven. How 
then does it look to chain ourselves fast to 
some supposed earthly good ? We have pro- 
claimed aloud and to the world that in relig- 



274 the pastor's gift; or, 

ion is to be found purer happiness than in 
aught else ; where then is our consistency in 
seeming to find it in any thing and in every 
thing, rather than in religion? If we had 
pledged ourselves to a neighbor, would we 
not make every possible effort to meet that 
pledge, rather than suffer the loss in our 
characters which a failure would cause ? But 
is a pledge to God of less consequence than 
one to man ? Can we most solemnly engage 
ourselves to walk in newness of life, and yet 
consistently turn back and again walk in 
our old ways ? If we would begin to be con- 
sistent, the tongue and the hand must point 
in the same direction. Our conduct must be 
alike day by day, and year by year. 

But connected with our love of consistency, 
is gratitude. If we are capable of appre- 
ciating a favor, its reception will lead to a 
kindred return, or to such a return as it is in 
our power to make. This we see beautifully 
illustrated in the case of the restored Gada- 
rene. He had been sorely afflicted, but was 
healed, and as an appropriate return for the 
favor, he was anxious to go with his benefac- 
tor *,nd faithfully devote to him his restored 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 275 

powers. But can any true disciple of Christy 
have a different desire ? He was in distress 
and has been relieved. " He was lost and 
is found. " He stood, stooping over the gulf 
of woe, feeling himself worthy only of a 
place there, and he has been taken thence, 
raised erect, and bade look up into heaven 
with the assurance of hope, " While we 
were yet sinners, Christ died for us," We are 
saved, " Not by works of righteousness which 
we have done, but according to his mercy, 
* * * by the washing of regeneration 
and the renewing of the Holy Ghost." And 
have we no gratitude in return ? Can we go 
on and live as though all this had not been ? 
Or shall we be grateful and " run well " for a 
season and then forget or be hindered ? If 
so, how can we be fit for the kingdom of 
God? 

But a consideration of our present happi- 
ness urges us to this perseverance. We were 
formed for enjoyment, As the flowers open 
to the sun, or as the sparks tend upward, so 
we, naturally, seek for pleasure. But the 
conscientious man can never be happy, while 
living in the neglect of well-known and ad- 



276 the pastor's gift; or, 

mitted duties. This neglect shuts to him the 
door of hope. It puts clasps upon his throb- 
bing heart and thus suppresses its otherwise 
happy beatings. Or if he can so overcome 
his sense of obligation, as to rest quietly, his 
rest is that of insensibility. With the Chris- 
tian, true and active happiness and prompt 
obedience ever go hand in hand. The latter, 
of necessity, precedes the former. It is the 
means of obtaining it and the channel of its 
reception. We must do, if we would live. 
We must take if we would be satisfied. As 
we need our daily bread, so we need that 
daily spiritual nutriment, which comes only 
through our obedience. As we weekly need 
the Sabbath as a day of rest, so we weekly 
need the influences which a due observance 
of the Sabbath can give, and this only. 
Vain indeed is the idea that our low feelings, 
temptations or trials are reasons for neglect- 
ing our closets, throwing down the family 
altar, or debarring ourselves from our former 
privileges. Such a course is like the starv- 
ing man's refusing to eat, because he is so 
hungry, or the freezing man's refusing to go 
to the fire, because he is so cold. A more 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 277 

unwise course can not be taken. It is giving 
up, and not strengthening " the things which 
remain. " It is yielding to adverse influences 
and making our own bondage secure. As we 
are saved by believing, so we are blessed and 
made happy by obeying. " But they that 
wait upon the Lord, shall renew their 
strength ; they shall run and not be weary, 
and they shall walk and not faint." 

And further ; there is not only a present, 
but also a future reward, to urge us to per- 
severe. If we at last find ourselves in the 
world of the blessed, our language will be, 
" Not unto us, 0 Lord, not unto us, but unto 
thy name give glory ; for thy mercy and thy 
truth's sake." And yet for present well do- 
ing, there are many great and exceedingly 
precious promises. These promises are ours. 
They are ours to urge us forward amid 
present temptations, trials and discourage- 
ments. Moses, it is said, chose " Rather to 
suffer afflictions with the people of God, than 
to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season, 
esteeming the reproach of Christ greater 
riches than the pleasures of Egypt; for he 
had respect unto the recompense of the re- 
24 



278 the pastor's gift; or, 

ward." He saw the prize before him, and 
to reach it, tasked his utmost powers to the 
end. So it should be with the Christian. 
He has chosen to himself the crown of life, 
and with his eye fixed on that crown, — 
" The recompense of the reward," — he 
should know no weariness, nor shadow of 
change. With Paul, he should reckon, "that 
the sufferings of this present time are not 
worthy to be compared with the glory which 
shall be revealed in us." There is no self- 
denial which we have experienced, or can 
experience ; there is no effort which we have 
made or can make, which is worthy of a 
thought, when compared with the present or 
the future gifts of Divine grace. Says our 
Saviour, " Verily, verily, I say unto you, 
there is no man that hath left house, or 
brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or 
wife or children, or lands for my sake and 
the Gospel's, but he shall receive an hundred- 
fold, now in this time, houses and brethren, 
and sisters, and mothers, and children, and 
lands, with persecutions ; and in the world to 
come, eternal life. And again; "Be thou 
faithful unto death and I will give thee a 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 279 

crown of life." If true to our trust, we are 
to behold the face of God " in righteousness." 
We are to be satisfied when we awake with 
His " likeness." "For eye hath not seen, 
nor ear heard, neither hath entered into the 
heart of man the things which God hath pre- 
pared for them that love Him." And " Be- 
loved, now are we the sons of God ; and it 
doth not yet appear what we shall be ; but we 
know that when He shall appear, we shall be 
like Him; for we shall see Him «*,s He is." 
Inspired with these and kindred promises, we 
may well go forward, knowing no weariness 
in well doing, and doubly assured that " In 
due season we shall reap if we faint not." 
Heaven is a prize worth toiling for till life is 
no more, though that life be long, and its 
pathway rough and difficult. 



280 



the pastor's gift; or, 



CHAPTER IX. 
DIVINE ASSISTANCE. 



OUR NEED OF THIS ASSISTANCE. 

In the preceding chapters, we have endea- 
vored to sketch the more prominent outlines 
of Christian duty. Some, perhaps, as they 
have cast their eyes over them, have been 
ready to respond, all true, and easily ob- 
served. And it is possible also, that others 
may have said, " These are hard sayings ; 
who can hear them ? " 

But what are the proper feelings with 
which the profession and duties of the Chris- 
tian are to be viewed ? We reply, not with 
too much confidence on the one hand, nor 
with too little on the other. There should 
be a meek and humble dependence, and yet 
a calm and serene fortitude. Without the 
assistance of Christ, we can " do nothing." 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 281 

With it, we " can do all things." While, 
therefore, we should bring every possible 
motive to bear on our judgments and con- 
sciences, and thus urge ourselves forward, 
we should constantly feel our need of divine 
aid, and stay ourselves upon it. 

In the first place, we need this aid in eon- 
trolling the Heart. Says the wise man, " Keep 
thy heart with all diligence ; for out of it are 
the issues of life." The heart is the soil in 
which our thoughts germinate. It is the 
fountain whence proceed the streams of con- 
duct. In its unseen recesses lies the occult 
power which puts in motion, and impels for- 
ward our moral, intellectual, and physical 
energies. Too much importance, therefore, 
can not be placed on its proper keeping. 
But are we of ourselves able thus to keep it"? 
Our own experience, as well as that of oth- 
ers, assures us to the contrary. When we 
first received the hope and joy of the Chris- 
tian, we imagined the victory already won. 
We could not believe that we should ever sin 
again, or cherish even an improper thought. 
But alas, how soon did we find ourselves mis- 
taken. A few days, or at most weeks, taught 
24* 



282 



the ^pastor's gift; OR ; 



us that we were yet " of the earth, earthy ; " 
still prone to evil; still doing those things 
which we would not, and leaving undone those 
which we would gladly have performed. And 
so shall we ever find it. We have not " al- 
ready attained," nor are we " already per- 
fect." We are not yet raised up to heaven, nor 
made "as the angels" there. We are sanc- 
tified only in part, and hence in keeping the 
heart, we still need the assistance of that 
Spirit which at first renewed it. 

But we have outward, as well as inward dan- 
gers. We are surrounded by adverse influen- 
ces, influences which are many, and often too 
powerful for us, if left to our own strength. 
The spirit of the world is antagonistic to that 
of religion. It is ever appealing to some one 
of our corrupted passions, and thus earnestly 
striving to turn us aside from our steadfast- 
ness. Thus there is an unceasing war be- 
tween the flesh and the spirit. The Chris- 
tian stands upon a moral eminence, above 
his fellows, while the unceasing tendency of 
their influence is to draw him down to their 
own level. This is the case ? even where there 
is no direct effort made, or wish allowed to 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 283 

this end. It is the natural consequence of 
their difference of feeling and relative posi- 
tions. But whence shall the Christian re- 
ceive the adequate power to resist? How 
shall he bear up against all those influences 
which thus serve to turn him aside or crush 
him down ? We know not, except as he re- 
ceives strength from above. He is " the 
salt of the earth." He is so by that health- 
ful, resisting, restraining and preserving in- 
fluence, which he has upon others. And this 
power of his to influence others would fail 
him, unless he is influenced himself from a 
higher and stronger source. 

And to the adverse influence of associates 
is to be added that of "the world" and its 
"cares" — "the deceitfulness of riches " — 
and "the pleasures of this life." Our daily 
pursuits, our anxieties, hopes and fears, as 
they pertain to our present state, often have 
a strong tendency to secularize the mind, and 
restrain or suppress the natural aspirations 
of the renewed heart. Objects which are 
near and apparently urgent, are prone to 
obtrude themselves before those which are 
more remote and more important. Thus we 



284 the pastor's gift; or, 

are in constant danger of having the true 
spirit and the outward life of piety stolen 
away and ourselves led off captive. Hence, 
to guard against this we need aid from above. 
We want to be spiritually bound to the throne 
of God, so that if we are allured too far 
away, the power which holds us there, will 
remind us of our aberration and gently lead 
us back. 

And we need assistance also against our 
great adversary which "as a roaring lion 
walketh about, seeking whom it may devour.' 9 
Our first parents fell by the art of this de- 
ceiver ; the upright Job groaned beneath his 
fierce assaults ; David was led far astray by 
him ; and even our Saviour himself was 
fiercely assailed for weeks in succession. 
What then are we that we may hope to es- 
cape ? There is no escape for us. There is 
no one exempt from his seductions. There is 
no place so sacred that he will not visit it. 
There is no duty so holy that he may not 
make its performance the scene of his most 
fierce assaults. At one time he will affright 
us by the terror of his own character, and at 
another, he will allure us^ as if himself were 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 285 

"an angel of light." When we are right, 
he will persuade us that we are wrong ; and 
when wrong, he will assure us that we are 
exactly right. In full view of all this, well did 
the Saviour say, " Watch and pray that ye 
enter not into temptation. " He needed angels 
to strengthen himself in His hour of trial ; 
and if such was the fact with Him, how much 
more so with us ? 

But we need aggressive as well as resisting 
aid. The Christian is not to stand like a 
stock or stone, and simply maintain his own. 
He is to impart to others. His grace is to 
shine as a lamp. He is to place himself in 
opposition to the general spirit of the com- 
munity, follow a path untrodden by the 
many, and become one of a peculiar people, 
a people often every where spoken against. 
He is to go in opposition to worldly interests 
and policy. He is to be constantly propo- 
gating his own sentiments, and thus laboring 
to convert the world to Christ. But can he 
do all this alone, single-handed and unaided ? 
"Let him that thinketh he standeth take 
heed lest he fall." Let us not, like Peter, 
boast what we will do, lest, like Peter, we be 



286 THE pastor's gift; or, 

left to our own strength, and so be found 
denying our master. We need here, not 
only fortitude and courage, but more than 
these. We need strength divine ; such strength 
as Grod only can give. It is by " grace " 
that we are saved. It is by " the power of 
God " that we are kept unto salvation, and 
it is by Christ's assisting us that we are to 
accomplish " all things." 



OUR ENCOURAGEMENT TO EXPECT THIS ASSISTANCE. 

It is ever unwelcome to know that we are 
in want. It depresses us, sinks our courage, 
and chills our affections. And yet, though 
pained by the consciousness of our own ne- 
cessities, it is cheering to know that aid, free 
and abundant, is ever near at hand. Thus 
it is with the Christian. He is needy. He 
knows this, feels it, and often is ready to de- 
spond in view of it. And yet, as he looks 
away from himself to the abundant grace 
which is in Christ, and is assured that the 
strength of Christ may be made perfect in 
his weakness, his anxiety is relieved and his 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 287 



heart cheered. But can we expect this ever- 
needed assistance ? 

First, we may be assured of this from the 
fact that Christ has already died for us and 
received us to himself So the apostle most 
conclusively argues : " For if while we were 
enemies, we were reconciled by the death of 
his Son, much more being reconciled, we shall 
be saved by His life. — He that spared not 
his own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, 
how shall He not with Him freely give us all 
things?" And true enough, how? If he 
has done the greater, and that too while we 
were enemies, he will certainly do the less, 
now that we have become friends, and even 
adopted children. 

But we have the full promise, as well as 
the ready inference. "Ask, and it shall be 
given you ; seek, and ye shall find ; knock, 
and it shall be opened unto you. — Verily, 
verily I say unto you, whatsoever ye shall 
ask the Father, in my name, He will give it 
you. — For we have not an high priest, which 
can not be touched with the feeling of our in- 
firmities ; but was in all points tempted like 
as we are, yet without sin. Let us, therefore, 



288 



THE PASTOR'S GIFT; OR, 



come boldly unto the throne of grace, that 
we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help 
in time of need. — Because thou hast kept 
the word of my patience, I also will keep 
thee from the hour of temptation, which shall 
come upon all the world to try them that 
dwell upon the earth. — My grace is suffici- 
ent for thee ; for my strength is made per- 
fect in weakness. — Be careful for nothing ; 
but in every thing, by prayer and supplica- 
tion, with thanksgiving, let your request be 
made known unto God; and the peace of 
God, which passeth all understanding, shall 
keep your hearts and minds through Christ 
Jesus. — But my God shall supply all your 
need, according to His riches in glory, by 
Christ Jesus." 

In relation to these promises, observe, 

a. That we are to " ask " if we would 
"receive;" our requests must be "made 
known unto God." 

b. In coming before God, we have a mer- 
ciful "high priest, which" can be "touched 
by the feeling of our infirmities," and through 
whom we can present our petitions. 

c. While we ask for assistance, our lives 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 289 

are to correspond with our request. " Be- 
cause thou hast kept the word of my pati- 
ence, I will keep thee." Improving what 
we have and receiving more are intimately 
connected : u For whosoever hath, to him 
shall be given, and he shall have more abund- 
ance ; but whosoever hath not, from him shall 
be taken away even that he hath." 

d. Asking under these circumstances, we 
are to receive in proportion to our wants — 
"According to all our need." God has no 
grace to throw away. He will not give spe- 
cial assistance while that which is ordinary 
is all that is requisite. " My grace is suffi- 
cient for thee." It will be so according to 
the day in which we live, and the part that 
we are called to act. We shall have strength 
to perform the duties of life, when life's du- 
ties are ordinary — to withstand temptations, 
when temptations are great — to bear perse- 
cutions, when persecutions are ours — to en- 
dure afflictions, when afflictions come — to die 
in peace and hope, when the hour of death 
has reached us. All this is promised, and 
for what more can we ask ? Nothing ; nor 
need we be anxious about possible emergen- 
25 



290 the pastor's gift; or^ 



cies before they arrive j 66 Sufficient unto the 
day is the evil thereof," and according to our 
day, so shall be our strength. 

But we have not only these many assur- 
ances themselves, but their past and frequent 
fulfillment " Hath He said, and shall He 
not do it ? Hath He spoken, and shall He 
not make it good?" We can not for a mo- 
ment cherish the thought of God's falsifying 
His word. No, nor has His past dealings 
with His people given us occasion for this* 
Says the Saviour, in His last prayer with the 
twelve, u While I was with them in the world 
I kept them in thy name j those that thou 
gavest me I have kept, and none of them is 
lost, but the son of perdition/' And so He 
has continued to keep His people. He does 
indeed leave them at times to the trial of 
their faith; but it is only that they may 
come forth as gold, Self-confident and vain 
like Peter, like him they may be momentarily 
left to their own strength, but " Though he 
fall, he shall not be utterly cast down ; for 
the Lord upholdeth him with his hand." From 
this fall he shall arise, doubly warned and 
doubly strengthened for the future. The err- 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 291 

ing frequently need correction, and such cor- 
rection has often been received and always 
must be expected. When met, however, in 
the path of duty, threatenings, stripes, im- 
prisonment and death have had no power to 
overcome. According to the circumstances 
in which the people of God have been placed, 
so has been their strength. And as it has 
been in the days of former trial, so it is now. 
A beautiful illustration of this we have in the 
case of our missionaries. Who have had rea- 
son to fear for the want of adequate assist- 
ance, if not they ? Taking the endearments 
of a Christian home, kindred, country, and 
all that is most fondly cherished on earth, 
and burying these in one common grave, they 
have held their lives in their hands, while 
they have gone forth amid the dark and for- 
bidding gloom of heathenism. The mere 
thought of this is sufficient to appall the 
stoutest heart. Nature shrinks from such a 
surrender on the one hand, and endurance 
on the other. Yes, here Christian fortitude., 
faith and hope may justly waver. And yet, 
urged on by duty's call, and strengthened by 
the assurance, " Lo, I am with you alway ? 



292 the pastor's gift; or, 

even unto the end of the world/' our mis- 
sionaries have gone forth in confidence, nor 
has this confidence disappointed them. Amid 
those scenes in which mere human strength 
would have utterly failed, the Saviour's 
strength has been abundantly sufficient. 

But this sufficient assistance has not been 
confined, in our day, to the missionary alone. 
Others also have received it in full. At 
times, in duties and in trials, from which 
they have at first hesitated and started back, 
ordinary Christians have been carried through, 
far beyond their faith, and even their hope. 
And thus it ever will be. " Faithful is He 
that calleth you, and who also will do it." 
Let us not then despond. Rather let us 
carefully and prayerfully inquire for duty, 
and as duty is made plain, so let us act. Let 
us be faithful to our high and solemn obliga- 
tions, and we shall, at last be made "more 
than conquerors, through Him that loved 
us." 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 298 



CHAPTER X, 

INDIVIDUAL RESPONSIBILITY. 



"THE eule of our final judgment." 

" So then every one of us shall give ac- 
count of himself to God." Such is the im- 
portant and positive declaration of the word 
of Divine truth. The present life is a scene 
of trial; the future is one of reckoning or 
retribution. There is at hand a day in which 
all are to appear, and have every action pass 
in solemn review, and every motive tried. 
But by what rule shall we be judged ? The 
Saviour replies, "He that reject eth me and 
receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth 
him. The word that I have spoken, the same 
shall judge him in the last day." Here then 
we have the entire view, at a glance, and 
if we will, we may prejudge ourselves. The 
word of Christ is to be the testing point. It 
25* 



294 the pastor's gift; or, 

is by this that we are to be approved or con- 
demned. 

In the preceding Chapters we have endeav- 
ored to give a general synopsis of Christian 
duty, as taught in the New Testament. But 
we are far from supposing that we have no- 
ticed every precept, and much less, each of 
its many applications. To have attempted 
this would have swelled our volume far be- 
yond its desired and designed limits. And 
besides ; to be thus full is quite unnecessary ; 
for if the main points are comprehended and 
appreciated, all due attention to the less will 
naturally follow. If we have mistaken the 
meaning of Scripture, our suggestions are 
without authority. If, however, we have suc- 
ceeded in comprehending and collating the 
true principles of the Sacred Record, then 
what we have said is of the utmost import- 
ance. It not only furnishes principles by 
which we are to live, but the very testing 
points of our final judgment. These princi- 
ples are sacred. They are binding, and we 
can not evade them if we would, nor trifle 
with them and yet hope to escape guiltless. 
They are our law, a law from whose strict 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 295 

obligations we can not be relieved. As the 
turning of our eyes from the sun, or the 
burying ourselves in caves, deep beyond its 
reach, does not blot the sun from the heavens, 
or obliterate its light, so our discarding the 
truth will not destroy that truth, nor dimin- 
ish its binding obligations. We may turn 
away from it ; we may shut our eyes against 
it, or even trample it beneath our feet, but 
it will remain the truth still. All unbelief, 
all denial and all attempts to discard it are 
worse than useless. It is a most fearful illu- 
sion. " Whosoever therefore shall break one 
of these least commandments, and shall teach 
men so, he shall be called the least in the 
kingdom of heaven. But whosoever shall do 
and teach them, the same shall be called 
great in the kingdom of heaven. — He that 
hath my commandments and keepeth them, 
he it is that loveth me ; and he that loveth 
me shall be loved of my Father, and I will 
love him and will manifest myself to him. — 
He that loveth me not, keepeth not my say- 
ings ; and the words which ye hear are not 
mine, but the Father's which sent me. — He 
that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my 



296 the pastor's gift; or, 



words, hath one that judgeth him ; the word 
that I have spoken, the same shall judge him 
in the last day." 



NO CHRISTIAN EXCUSED. 

The profession of the Christian religion is 
a high and holy one. It is noble and elevat- 
ing. Those who have made it, have assumed 
a public position, and have invited the gaze 
of God, angels and men ; yes, and of devils 
also. The act itself creates no new obliga- 
tion. It simply acknowledges and assumes 
those which previously existed. The profes- 
sion proclaims a belief in the divine authority 
of the Scriptures, their truthfulness, and their 
imperative claim to obedience. It embraces 
a most sacred pledge to God and to the 
church, to receive this volume as the Word 
of God, and to walk in accordance with its 
teachings. To make such a profession is 
right. It is a duty, provided it is done un- 
derstandingly, and is preceded by that change 
of heart which can alone qualify one for 
church membership. But what will our pub- 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 297 

# 

lie profession avail, if our subsequent lives 
do not correspond with it? Nothing. We 
shall be as mere " sounding brass or as tink- 
ling cymbals." Our "name" will be "to 
live," while we are "dead." We shall be 
rejecting "the counsel of God" against our- 
selves and preparing ourselves to be judged 
and condemned out of our " own mouth." 
The point which we now wish to press upon 
the mind is this : if any one has made a pro- 
fession of the Christian religion, he is firmly 
bound by that profession. All the duties 
and observances enjoined in the New Testa- 
ment, the public and the private, the great 
and the small, are imperiously binding upon 
him, and in no violation or neglect, will he, 
or can he be held guiltless. 

You say that you do not occupy a high posi- 
tion in the church. But if you are not 'faith- 
ful in that which is " least," would you be so in 
that which is greater? If you owe but a 
single dollar, are you not as much bound to 
pay this, as you would be bound to pay, if 
you owed a hundred dollars or more ? Allow 
that your position, in life or church, is the 
most humble ; you are as fully bound to dis- 



298 the pastor's gift; or, 

m 

charge the duties of that position, as you 
would be those of one far higher, and having 
far more depending upon it. 

You say you make no lofty pretensions to 
piety. But what if you do not ? You have 
professed the religion of Christ, and this is 
enough. You are held by this profession, a 
profession by which you have acknowledged 
you obligations to obey the teachings of the 
New Testament, and pledged yourself to do 
so. Your present high pretensions or low 
pretensions have nothing to do with your 
obligation. There is no half-way business 
here. There is no half adoption, nor half 
sonship. It is every thing or nothing. It is 
being for Christ or against him ; and unless 
your life corresponds in some good degree 
with the requirements of the New Testament, 
you have no claim to be considered a Chris- 
tian or right to hope that you are one. 

You reply that your gifts are small. Grant 
it ; but this does not relieve you from the 
obligation to improve what you have. " If 
there is first a willing mind, it is accepted 
according to that a man hath, and not accord- 
ing to that he hath not." 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 



299 



You urge that you would, do if others did* 
But it may be that if you should do, others 
would. 

You answer that you have tried this and it 
has had no effect. Be it so. But suppose 
that every other member of your church 
makes a shipwreck of his faith, and only pre- 
pares himself a bed, deep in the world of woe 7 
will this, in any measure, excuse or justify 
you ? You know it would not. 

You say again, that your feelings do not 
prompt you to perform this or that duty. 
But this is the source of your condemnation. 
If you were anxious to do and could not, then 
you would be excusable, But to be unwilling 
to do while you have the power, decidedly 
condemns you, 

You r say yet further, that you are weak 
and unable to do what you would, But this 
does not excuse you from doing what you 
can. "And God is able to make all grace 
abound towards you ; that ye, always having 
all sufficiency, in all things, may abound to 
every good work/ 7 

But it is unnecessary to follow these ex- 
cuses further. There is no plea which we 



800 



the pastor's gift; or, 



have made or can make, which will be ac- 
cepted of God. His Word is our guide, and 
where that speaks, we must obey, or abide 
the consequences. And not only so, but if 
our hearts are right, we should have no dis- 
position to be excused. No, not from the 
least, or most unpleasant of these duties. 
Says our Saviour, " If a man love me, he 
will keep my words." " Love is the fulfill- 
ing of the law," and obedience is the first 
fruit of love. But let no one hope to be 
owned of Christ hereafter, who does not own 
and obey him while here. 

Thus far in this Section, we have spoken 
of the church member only. But more or 
less allied with this class, is another which 
deserves a moment's attention. We refer to 
those who acknowledge a hope as Christians, 
while they withhold a public confession of re- 
ligion. Such occupy a position no where ac- 
knowledged in the word of God. " He that 
is not with me is against me. He that gath- 
ereth not with me, scattereth abroad. — No 
man can perve two masters: for either he 
will hate the one and love the other ; or else 
he will hold to the one and despise the other. 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 301 

Ye can not serve Grod and Mammon" And 
yet, strange to say, while the class before us 
are endeavoring to stand on this unauthorized 
and indefensible ground — ground which we 
are assured no one can occupy — ■ they imag- 
ine themselves to be less responsible than the 
church member. But why should they in- 
dulge such a thought ? Why delude them- 
selves with a belief so wide from the truth ? 
It may be that while we hold no connection 
with any church, no church can justly have 
cognizance of our conduct. But are we away 
from beneath the eye of God, and beyond 
obligations to Him ? Far from it. Our re- 
sponsibility to Him is unaffected by any pro- 
fession or non-profession on our part, or by 
any connection or want of connection with a 
specific religious body. If a man is a Chris- 
tian, if he is indeed " born of God," he ought 
to be a member of some church. He ought 
to be so, unless he is so situated that this 
connection is inconsistent or impossible. This 
is the command of the Redeemer, and if he 
refuses or neglects to obey this command, this 
neglect, in no way, releases him from those 
duties which follow an obedience to this. Re- 
26 



802 THE PASTOR'S GIFT; OR, 

pentance and baptism, or a public Christian 
profession, go hand in hand, and though one 
is less essential to our salvation than the 
other, yet, as a command of God, does not 
less require obedience. And if we neglect 
this second great Gospel duty, it in no way 
releases us from others, which in proper or- 
der succeed it. If I owe five dollars and pay 
the first, but refuse to pay the second, this, 
by no means, cancels my indebtedness for the 
last three. No more does our refusal to per- 
form a first or second religious duty release 
us from our obligation to meet and perform, 
in their proper course, all which follow. 
Granting this (and we know not how the 
conclusion can be avoided), it must be ad- 
mitted that what we have said of Christian 
responsibility, belongs not only to the actual 
church member, but equally so to the class 
before us. And does the eye of one of this 
number fall upon these pages ? If so, then 
let me entreat you, reader, not to deceive 
yourself. Do not imagine that in religious 
matters, you can hold a neutral position. Do 
not hope that you can secure to yourself the 
blessings of piety, while you stand aloof from 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 303 

its duties and responsibilities. Either re- 
nounce your cherished hope, or at once take 
that open and decided stand, which duty and 
consistency require. Your position is one of 
incongruity, and if indeed a Christian, one 
of ingratitude and sin. 

But you say you do not feel yourself wor- 
thy of church-membership. But this ques- 
tion does not turn on your sense of personal 
■worth, but on the worthiness of Christ. It 
is not whether you are deserving the place 
and the privileges which He confers, but 
whether He is worthy of your obedience. 
He commands you to place yourself upon 
His side and upon the side of His people, 
and if you neglect to do so, you take upon 
yourself deliberate disobedience. 

But you say again that you do not wish to 
be a church member, unless you could live 
differently from what most church members 
do. But the spirit which shows itself here, 
begets distrust of all your pretensions to 
piety, or, at least, of the correctness of your 
present disposition. But admit that we can 
not justify the conduct of every church mem- 
ber ; or admit that the church would often be 



304 



the pastor's gift; or. 



far better off without certain members than 
it is with ; by what right do you look at the 
faults of such, and thereby justify yourself 
in the same, or in others which are even far 
greater ? The church member of whom you 
complain, has at least the credit of putting 
himself on the side of Christ, while you have 
not even done this. He may be endeavoring 
to live according to the best of his light, 
knowledge, and strength, but you are delibe- 
rately withholding that which the plainest 
precepts of the Bible enforce. His inadver- 
tences may have an injurious influence, but 
your deliberate acts may have one which is 
far greater and more adverse. 

But you say yet again, that the church 
member should live differently. You know 
then how you ought to live yourself, and 
hence have no excuse for your conduct. Un- 
boastful indeed is the position of him, who 
does nothing but stand and complain of what 
others do, or fail to do. " First cast out the 
beam out of thine own eye ; then thou shalt 
see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy 
brother's eye." Go and do your own duty, 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 305 

and then with propriety and effect you may 
admonish others. 



THE UNBELEIVER NOT EXCUSED. 

By unbeliever, in this connection, we in- 
clude all of that very numerous class, who do 
not possess or acknowledge an experimental 
and living interest in Christ. It is quite pos- 
sible that some, and we would hope many, of 
this class have perused the preceding pages. 
As such readers have advanced from Section 
to Section, they may have given a hearty and 
cheerful response, and this too, perhaps, with- 
out once considering that what has been said 
to others, has an equal application to them- 
selves. If such is the fact, permit me to say 
to you, reader, kindly yet plainly, you are 
mistaken. We have indeed addressed our- 
selves more especially to professing Chris- 
tians. But if what we have taught is truth, 
based upon the clear and manifest principles 
of the Bible, it has no exclusive application. 
The Sacred Volume w T as given, not to the 
Christian as such, but to man as man. " And 
26* 



306 THE PASTOR S GIFT ; OR, 

what I say unto one, I say unto all, watch. " 
But if the Scriptures were given to man as 
man, then their precepts are binding upon 
him as such, and upon one man, as fully and 
as imperatively as on another. There may 
be a given order in which some of its precepts 
are to be observed, but this is not generally 
true, and there is not one common duty, 
taught in the entire Scriptures, which can be 
set aside, or neglected with supposed inno- 
cence, no, not by one rational member of the 
entire human family. 

The idea, not unfrequently, seems to ob- 
tain, that the innocence or guilt of an action 
depends much on the profession or non-pro- 
fession of the actor. But whence did this 
strange thought originate ? On what ground, 
by what argument, or by what sacred precept 
is it sustained ? Is not a vile oath profanity 
for the deacon as much as for the minister ? 
— for the private member as much as for the 
deacon ? — and for the most ungodly man in 
the world as much as for the Christian ? Is 
it not, in each case, a transgression of the 
same law ? Is it not equally an offense 
against the same God ? And is not neglect 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 307 

of parents, unrestrained anger, licentious- 
ness, theft, looseness of tongue, or covetous- 
ness, as much a transgression in one as in 
another ? You do not pretend to deny this. 
But why then do you talk of the same thing 
as being more innocent or guilty in one than 
in another ? Or why may you without guilt 
neglect a common duty, which you believe 
another is bound to perform ? 

You reply that you make no pretensions to 
religion, or any thing better than what you do. 
But does a man's acknowledging his profes- 
sion to be that of a murderer, make murder, 
by his hands, an innocent act ? You start at 
such a thought. But if you, yourself, start 
at this extreme application of your own the- 
ory, how far must you vary from this appli- 
cation, in order to make your theory correct? 
In other words, what has a man's profession 
or want of profession to do with his insepar- 
able responsibility? Just nothing at all. To 
say that it has, would be to say that a man is 
bound to do only what he pledges himself to 
do. But would such a conclusion be correct or 
safe ? Could civil society exist, or common 
business be transacted, were such principles 



308 the pastor's gift; OR, 



to prevail ? Suppose you are a merchant ; 
here are three men, each of whom enters 
your store and receives goods to the amount 
of ten dollarSo As you call for pay, one ac- 
knowledges the debt, pays in part, and pledges 
himself to do further as he is able. The sec- 
ond acknowledges the debt, but declines pay- 
ment or promise to pay. The third refuses 
to pay, and denies that he owes you. Now, 
were not each of these men equally indebted 
to you at first ? And has not the first acted 
the most righteous and honorable part of the 
three ? There can be no denying this. But 
change the question ; suppose that the first 
man owes you thirty dollars, the second twen- 
ty, and the third only ten. Would the fact 
that the second or the third owes you less 
than the first, make him under less obligation 
to pay what he does owe? You reply, no. 
We are as much bound to pay a debt of one 
dollar as one of a hundred dollars. What 
then has a man's simple promise or refusal 
to promise to do with increasing or lessening 
his natural and inherent obligation ? Noth- 
ing in the least. In the cases supposed, the 
simple fact that each had understandingly 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. 309 

received goods to the full amount for which 
payment is claimed, renders him morally 
bound to pay, whether he pledges himself to 
do so or not ; and the subsequent simple 
promise or denial neither increases nor lessens 
the first and original obligation. So it is in 
regard to our obligation to God. We have 
all received from Him life, capacities, knowl- 
edge and privileges ; and this receiving from 
His hand has created, on our part, an obli- 
gation which is before and above all promise 
or refusal to promise ; all profession or want 
of profession, which we have made or can 
make. 

But you say a worse influence will follow 
the offense of the professor of religion than 
that of those who make no such profession. 
Admit it, or admit rather that it would be 
more talked about ; what then ? Will this 
make the actual guilt of the one greater than 
that of the other ? So you think ; but why ? 
Is not a falsehood a falsehood, whether spok- 
en by a professed saint or an acknowledged 
sinner? by Gabriel or Beelzebub? 

But you plead still that one has had more 
light than the other. And what of that. 



310 THE PASTOR* S GIFT; OR, 

provided each has had light sufficient to know 
that what is done is wrong, or what is said is 
false, and is the violation of a just and rea- 
sonable law ? And why is it that so many 
will deceive themselves, and endeavor to cloak 
their sins with the garb of a mere specter ? 
The idea that a common and universal duty 
is binding on one and not on another, or that 
the same act is wrong in one and right in 
another, and this too on account of a profes- 
sion, or a want of profession, is most false 
and delusive. It has not a shadow of founda- 
tion in truth, and only serves to sink its vic- 
tim deeper and deeper in the world of woe. 
If I take fire in my bosom, my friend, I shall 
be burned. And so will you, if you do the 
same. If I sin, this will be upon me the 
plague spot of moral death. It will not be 
less so with you, if you do the same. In 
other words, obligation is obligation, whoever 
is the subject of it, and sin is sin, whoever 
commits it. If we have more given us, we 
shall be responsible for more, and if we have 
less, for less. If we have much light, the 
plainer will be our guilt, if we transgress. 
But w*th much or little light, if we have 



OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY. Sll 

enough to discern the right, and yet pursue 
the wrong, this will be sufficient for our just 
and full condemnation. We knew our duty 
but did it not. 

But you urge again, that one ought not to 
profess religion, unless Tie possesses it* True. 
But the first command in the Gospel is, that 
"All men, every where repent." And the 
encouragement is, "Ask, and it shall be 
given you ; seek, and ye shall find ; knock, 
and it shall be opened unto you." You, kind 
reader, ought to be a Christian. This is re- 
quired of you by the command of God, and 
the welfare of your own soul. And, having 
obeyed this first command, and secured for 
yourself this first great blessing — -personal 
piety ■ — all other Christian duties (and those 
which are moral and civil also), will follow 
in their proper and natural order. But if 
you omit your first duty, do not indulge the 
thought that this will release you from the 
second, third, fourth, and all that follow. 

But finally, one and all, farewell. May 
you each have a true and living faith, and 
with "all diligence," may you "add to your 
faith virtue ; and to virtue knowledge ; and 



312 



the pastor's gift; or, 



to knowledge temperance, and to temperance 
patience; and to patience godliness; and to 
godliness brotherly kindness ; and to broth- 
erly kindness charity." And "Whatsoever 
things are true, whatsoever things are honest, 
whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things 
are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, what- 
soever things are of good report ; if there be 
any virtue, and if there be any praise, think 
on these things ; — and the very God of peace 
sanctify you wholly, and I pray God your 
whole spirit, and soul and body, be preserved 
blameless, unto the coming of our Lord Jesus 
Christ. — Amen, and amen." 



